As the Sun Sets
by essaysforbreakfast
Summary: [Diane-centric] The Ten Commandments are defeated, and with their demise, the new Holy War came to an end. The Seven Deadly Sins need to adjust to a new era of peace, one that no longer requires their strength. So when King asks Diane to go with him and stay in the Fairy King's Forest, she has no reason to hesitate, hoping to finally leave a life of fighting behind.
1. The promises I've made

The Ten Commandments had been defeated, and with their demise, the new Holy War had come to an end. Despite the celebrated victory of the Seven Deadly Sins and their allies, there were lives lost and homes crumbled, and the future did not shine brightly for everyone.

For the Sven Deadly Sins, the newfound peace resulted in a sudden vanish of purpose. Liones and Camelot respectively had their own Holy Knights fit to protect the kingdom and its inhabitants from any low-level threat that might arise from the ashes of the crumbled Demon Clan. There was no longer need for a group of sentenced criminals with remarkable but to the commoner inexplicable powers.

And so, followed the dismemberment of the famed Seven Deadly Sins.

Their Captain, Meliodas, was the first one to leave, only two days after the grand celebration and subsequent honoring of their team. Diane could not even be mad with him. The fight against his brother, Zeldris, seemed to have taken its toll on not only his body but his spirit as well. She had never seen the Captain as exhausted as when all his composure had fallen away, and he had bid the team farewell, only supported by Elizabeth's hand holding his own.

Diane hoped from the bottom of her heart that their suffering had finally been brought to an end. No one deserved it as much as they did. When she tried to, Diane was able to imagine the two of them living in a small tavern on a hill, always embraced in the presence of each other, and the thought warmed her spirit.

Without their Captain, the team didn't last very long, and everything fell apart in a rush. Merlin headed to Camelot, Ban headed to seemingly nowhere in particular, and Escanor decided to stay in Liones Capital to form and train the following generation of Holy Knights, on behalf of King Bartra.

So when King asked her if she would want to join him on his way home, to the Fairy King's Forest, Diane had no reason to hesitate. There was nothing left binding her to Liones, to the world that would once more belong to the humans. And there was no one else who she rather wanted to be with.

The way his face lit up, rivalling the star filled sky above, was reminding her of a time long gone, when there had been nothing to worry about and no war to be fought. Diane believed wholeheartedly that the future could be just like those days.

They decided to leave the very next day during the early morning hours, where the town was still asleep, caught up in blissful dreams of what was and what would be. There were only two other souls present from whom the Fairy and Giant had yet to part. Escanor was already wearing his new armor bearing the two winged horses forming the coat-of-arms of Liones, the metal reflecting the light like a small sun of its own.

"I expect both of you to come and awe at the new Holy Knights once they have been trained by me," the Sin of Pride declared, his demeanor befitting his title. With a little help from his Sacred Treasure, Rhitta, he already possessed his daytime form, despite the early hour.

"We'll make sure of it, Escanor," Diane answered for King and herself, putting on a smile.

Escanor nodded his head, seemingly satisfied with the response, and proceeded to pat King on the shoulder, resulting in a pained outcry from the Fairy.

Diane shifted her gaze down towards Gowther, who had been standing silently in Escanor's shadow. The clouds darkening his mind were almost visible as he avoided any eye contact.

"Gowther –," Diane began, but was instantly interrupted by him.

"You two do not need to go, you know?" Gowther said, his eyes still fixed on the distant horizon, where the sun was slowly climbing its way up over the sky. "There is no need to break the team apart in such absolute manner."

It pained Diane to see him like this. In the past weeks, Gowther had become more than just a comrade to her, she had started to consider him a dear friend. And he himself had opened up to the team as well, trying his best to connect. And yet, Diane had not even considered how Gowther must have felt about the end of their journey and their group.

This time it was King who found the right words. "Hey Gowther, this is no goodbye for forever. You'll finally have time to read all the books you wanted, and when Sir Gilthunder and Lady Margaret move forward with their plans, we will definitely come back for that as well. And you can visit us any time you like, okay?"

With these words, King now floated right in front of Gowther and, after a short hesitation, went on to give him a hug. Overwhelmed with emotions, Diane wanted to join in right away but decided, due to a lack of better options, to simply pick both of them up with her hands and hold them closer.

When she let both of them go, Gowther had almost lost his glasses, and King's face was still showing a shade of red.

"We should get going," the Fairy King mumbled, tempted to hide his face in Chastifol's pillow-form in a flash of old habit.

"Alright!" Diane replied cheerfully, sending the other two Sins a wink, before heading towards the Fairy King's Forest, her beloved King by her side.

It seemed the colors all around them shined more brightly with each step they took as spring settled in.

~ : ~

The sun seemed to never set on the Fairy King's Forest and time could only be measured by the events unfolding outside of it. King and Diane revisited the kingdom of Liones for Gilthunder's wedding with Margaret – where Diane teased the Fairy King by accepting a dance with his personal arch-enemy, Howzer – and later to celebrate the birth of the royal heir, Hector. But for the longest time King and Diane just lived in blissful ignorance of the world around them, living through days that seamlessly blended into each other. There was no war to fight and no goal to work towards, simply living in the moment for a small eternity.

Diane told herself she couldn't possibly be happier, but every now and then her very core ached in a faint pain that she could neither understand nor explain.

The feeling returned one day while she was walking beside King who wanted to show her another favorite place of his. Sunlight filtered through a ceiling made out of the crowns of countless enormous trees, casting the path in front of them in the familiar green light that Diane now associated so strongly with the Forest. The comforting rustling of the leaves all around her almost completely covered the faint murmur, but Diane noticed it nonetheless. She stopped in her tracks and soon enough managed to spot three Fairies, hidden behind the branches of a nearby tree. One of them, a young female yet to grow wings, made round eyes as she realized that they had been spotted.

"Diane?" King's voice called, but her concentration was fixed on the group of Fairies, who looked at her with a mixture of embarrassment and terror.

King, who had floated closer, now noticed the group as well.

"Why don't you give up hiding and show yourself?" His voice sounded harder than usual.

One by one, the three Fairies left their hiding spot and stopped in front of the Fairy King. The one who had been looking at Diane with panic never took her gaze of the Giant, as if to examine every last detail of her. The other two, one male the other female, focused on their feet, ashamed. King remained silent for a moment, and the feeling of discomfort within Diane grew.

"Now go. I don't want to see you spying on other people again."

"Yes, Fairy King Harlequin," the male Fairy answered weakly. He and his winged fellow retreated in the general direction of the Sacred Tree, but the younger one stayed firm.

After a few seconds, she swiftly turned away from Diane to look at King.

"Why is there a Giant in the Fairy Realm when there should only be Fairies here?"

The question echoed through Diane's mind like a choir of voices, desperate to tell her something she couldn't understand. When she regained a minimum of composure, she turned to see King frozen as well. He seemed to fight an internal battle, until the tension released and he turned once more to the younger Fairy.

"What is your name?" he asked. His tone gave no hint on what he was feeling.

"Freya."

"Freya, Diane is not only allowed to stay here as long as she wants to, I myself invited her. The Fairy King's Forest no longer needs to be isolated from the rest of the world, now that the war is over. And even if we still needed to be this careful, I would trust Diane not just with my own life but with the entirety of the Fairy Clan." He paused for a moment. To let his words sink in or because he realized the impact of what he just said, Diane wasn't sure. "I don't want to ever hear of this again," he concluded. Freya only nodded in wide-eyed confirmation and proceeded to follow the other two Fairies.

Diane studied King's face again, but for once she could read no emotions from it.

"Are they afraid of me?" He only clenched his fists. "I know you read all their hearts, and don't try to deny it. So, what was it? Where they afraid? Or do they just reject me because I'm a Giant?" She didn't intend for her voice to become this shrill, but at least it caused a reaction on King's face, now filled with sorrow. She knew she had been dead right.

There it was again, the feeling of being out-of-place, of not belonging anywhere at all. The desire to be smaller, simply to not be so different. Diane had harnessed these feelings whenever she was around humans, but she had thought that the wound had healed. Only to discover that the aching never went away completely.

"Maybe I should just shrink to human size with the bracelet Merlin gave to me. Then I wouldn't stick out as much." Diane tried to sound careless while twirling a strand of hair around her finger. There was no point in dwelling on the problem, for it would only cause pain for both of them. And that was the last thing Diane wanted.

"No." King's response broke her train of thought immediately. He locked eyes with her and started to close the gap between them.

"You shouldn't need to change anything about you because of what others think. Please… don't ever change who you are or who you want to be like. D-Diane you are the most –"

With every word he said, Diane moved closer to the point where their faces were only inches apart, and King could no longer concentrate on what he was saying. His cheeks were burning red.

Diane flashed him a bright smile. "You really haven't changed at all."

"W-What is that supposed to mean?" he demanded to know. Once more, he was absolutely clueless as to what he had done for her.

It had always been this way, whenever Diane was feeling down, Harlequin had been there to cheer her up and make the world feel a little brighter. Nothing about that had changed since she had been a child, walking by the riverside to look for food only to find him instead.

She gave Harlequin another smile, to chase away his indignant expression. "Wasn't there something you wanted to show me?"

"Yeah, you're right," he answered cheerfully yet a little confused.

The clouds darkening the day had disappeared with almost no trace left of them ever being there at all. They continued their walk as if nothing ever happened.

Within a few minutes they reached their destination, or at least what Diane suspected to be their destination.

A small lake, its water so dark and clear it almost seemed unnatural, surrounded by ancient copper beeches. Despite the faint murmur of the water and the whispers of the rustling leaves, the place was cast in a mantle of silence. But it wasn't a silence that made one feel uneasy or desperate to fill with words. Rather, the place felt safe and secure and entirely distant from the world outside, an ancient sanctuary forgotten to everyone else.

She felt King shift a little beside her, unsure of her reaction to the secret place of his. Diane couldn't help but wonder if he had ever shown it to someone else.

"It's wonderful," she breathed out, scared of the noise her voice would cause.

He was no longer looking at the lake but at her, as if he had just found something marvelous to which the quiet beauty of their surroundings paled in comparison. For a moment she bathed in the awe his face expressed and felt the silence wash over her with a gentle touch. Then Harlequin snapped out of his trance.

"I'm glad you like it." His voice sounded hoarse as if he hadn't made use of it in some time.

They sat down close to the shore, and if the reflection of the sun had not moved over the water, they might have been unable to tell if any time had passed at all. There was no need for words, for their minds were at peace, at least for a little while.

Diane was reminded once more of how glad she was to be here, with Harlequin, in the Fairy King's Forest. She would not have known where else to go. Sure, Drole had told her she could change the Giant Clan for the better, possibly even as their leader, but Diane had left her people for a reason. Their culture, their very essence of being, revolved around fighting, and, even if there was a way to change that, Diane feared she would just destroy the identity of her own race. She herself might welcome the change, but others should not be forced to alter themselves or their ideals. Just like Harlequin said.

No, leaving them be was the best decision to make, she believed. And she wanted King to know that.

"I'm so happy you asked me that day to come with you," Diane said, breaking the silence surrounding them. "I want you to know that. For all the mistakes I made, the decision to go with you wasn't one of them."

She expected him to be relieved, or at least show any reaction at all, but he seemed entirely distant, playing around with his own thoughts absentmindedly. The moment lasted longer and longer, to the point where she was almost going to repeat her words. Only then he finally spoke.

"I can't think of any mistakes you made." His smile never reached his eyes. "I – I made so many I can't count them anymore. And I broke promises, too. I gave the burden of protecting the Fairy King's Forest to Elaine, and then I wasn't even there when it was destroyed and she was –"

She didn't want to see him punishing himself like that. King might have made mistakes, and some of them might have even been followed by dire consequences, but he always made up for them. He had carried the guilt of his actions for far too long.

"King, you –"

"And I left you, too."

She looked down at him and found him staring at her. Violet-colored eyes met those of amber, the latter drowning in a sea of regret, forming tears unable to break out. His sudden hurt shook her to her very core, and she wanted nothing more than for his suffering to disappear or at least for him to express it with words, so she could say something in response, to make him feel better at all costs.

"I left you without even saying goodbye. And I – I erased your memories. Back then it felt like the only option I had. But it was wrong to do this to you. All I've ever done was mess things up and hurt the ones closest to me." The distress spoke from his voice in unrivalled intensity. "All I can do is apologize."

Through his words, Diane finally understood what pained him so much and why he had been so distant since they had come here. She realized he had planned to tell her this for a while now, but had always been unable to face the consequences. He must have believed she would hate him now. But really, he couldn't be farther from the truth.

"I know why you did it." She tried to force the tears away from her voice. "You did it for me. Because I was just a child, and without you I wouldn't have known where to go. Without these memories, I was able to return to the Giant Clan."

At last, her voice broke from the trembling that had started to shake her whole body. Just now it dawned to her what King had meant with his words and what consequences arose from this revelation. He had taken her most precious memories away from her – and she could not even be mad with him.

"You're right, I told myself I'd done it for you." He caught her gaze with such an intensity she felt unable to turn away, and her mind was only fixated on him. "But I also did it because I couldn't stand the thought of breaking another promise. I told you I would always be by your side. It was the most important promise I've ever made – and I still failed you." He trailed off.

Diane was touched by his honesty. Of course, she wished he had opened up to her earlier to prevent her from wondering what had caused her to forget. But seeing him broken down so entirely, fearing the worst to come from her; it only made her more grateful for having met him all those years ago.

She reached out with one finger to carefully rest against his cheek, at last wet with tears. "But you didn't break your promise. You are here with me now, aren't you?"

Through his silent shaking, she closed the gap between them, until she was holding him in her hands, one cheek resting against his hair.

"King, I could never hate you for what you did. What else can I say to make you trust me?", she whispered, her voice only audible to him.

It took a while until one of them moved again to break the spell, but the bond remained, linking them together, inseparable for far longer than this one moment.

"You are the most important thing to me, and if you let me try, I will never break a promise to you ever again", Harlequin said, finally able to face her again. The tears had dried from his voice, and this time his smile was genuine.

"You don't have to make any more promises to me," Diane answered just as strongly. "I already know how much you mean what you said."

There was no more need for words, for they had grown closer together than ever before, two parts of one soul, with no secrets between them, and it remained this way for the coming years. Where they lived and breathed under the security of the Sacred Tree and where time was immeasurable once more. They sometimes visited the secret lake, and to both of them it came to be a place made for and only ever known by the two of them. And with the seasons passing them by unnoticed, their time with the Seven Deadly Sins grew ever so distant to them, like the last remnants of morning dew on a summer's day.


	2. You are everything to me

Escanor was the first of them to go.

Diane had only ever imagined the Sin of Pride to go down in a last battle of epic proportions, but life rarely had the things in store that one thought it would. In the end, it was old age that proved to be Escanor's fiercest enemy and also the only one to ever defeat him. To Diane it seemed as though it had only been days since she last saw him after the birth of Hector, him wearing his shiny armor and a prideful smile.

He didn't seem so old back then.

But now, Hector, first prince of Liones, was a grown man, and Escanor was dead.

With the noticeable exception of their Captain, all remaining Seven Deadly Sins had gathered for Escanor's funeral held at the graveyard reserved for Liones' Holy Knights. Merlin hadn't aged a day in all those years, the same applying to Gowther and Ban. The entire scenery felt surreal, with the Sins looking the same as thirty years ago, while standing next to an aging King Gilthunder of Liones, surrounded by Holy Knights they did not recognize.

Gilthunder shared a few words of honor for the Sin of Pride, and Ban even managed to ease the atmosphere a bit by praising Escanor's unparalleled taste for booze and his not so unparalleled sense for poetry. It made Diane realize how little she had actually known her comrade, but she wasn't sure if there had been anyone who had truly known him.

Perhaps someone from his former life, before he had joined the Seven Deadly Sins.

After all the formal notes had been dealt with and all words had been said, the human crowd quickly disappeared from the scene with more pressing matters on their minds. The tumults in Camelot were reaching new heights, they said. Diane had hoped to ask Margaret or Gilthunder if they had any news on the whereabouts of Meliodas and Elizabeth, but the opportunity went by, and the pair was guided back to the castle by their son. King, too, had left her side to exchange a few words with Ban, leaving Diane unsure of what to do with herself. Finally, she walked over to Merlin, who was looking into the distance, lost in thoughts and ideas only known to her.

Diane wasn't sure what to say, and so she reserved herself to fiddling around with Merlin's magical item number 281, otherwise known as 'Shrinking Bracelet'. She had decided to put it on for today, but in retrospect, she could not tell her reasoning.

"I see, my experimental item is working quite well," Merlin said, not having taken a real look. "I thought it would be more practical than the pills I previously cave you."

"Yeah, thanks for that, Merlin."

The silence grew again between them.

"Have you seen Escanor? Recently, I mean… before this," Diane tried to continue the conversation, feeling more and more uncomfortable, as if she was stepping into a moment of intimacy.

"Yes, for the past years I have continued my studies in Liones, rather than Camelot," Merlin said cryptically, masterfully revealing no information as usual.

A bit frustrated, Diane decided to be a bit more direct. "Are you – you miss him, don't you?"

The question hung between them for a while, far beyond the point where Diane started to regret ever walking over to Merlin, much less wanting to discuss the matter of Escanor. She already opened her mouth to apologize when Merlin finally answered.

"Yes, I do miss him. And I wish I hadn't distanced myself from him. When you've lived for three thousand years, you start to lose your sense of time, and you forget that the lives of those around you aren't as immune to the passing of it as yours is. I full-on believed I had more time."

Diane was more than just surprised to hear that; she wasn't even sure if Merlin had ever addressed that many words at her, much less be this honest about something this personal. Deep inside of her, a sting of pain started to form, and without even thinking about it, she shot a glance at King, still entangled in his conversation with Ban.

"There's no need to worry, Diane," Merlin said, not only noticing Diane's shift of attention but also guessing its cause. "Every Fairy King is granted an increased lifespan to better serve his clan. It's, in fact, much more likely that he will outlive most of us, including you."

Coming from someone else these words might have sounded harsh, even untactful, but from Merlin it seemed to be the simple matter of things, facts spoken out loud. Somehow it made them closer to reality for Diane, not just something to hope for but to genuinely believe in and to even rely on. A promise.

"What are you going to do now, Merlin?" Diane asked, more out of politeness then curiosity, her mind still set on a different subject.

"I still have experiments to work on, so I will stay in Liones for a while longer. There will always be more mysteries to be solved." Despite her words being very much in line with the Sin of Gluttony, somehow, it seemed as though the fascination of the unknown had vanished from Merlin's voice, leaving behind a shell of her former self. But Diane wasn't sure if she had only imagined that.

"Thanks, Merlin. For the bracelet and well – for what you said."

"I hope you fair better than I did, Diane," Merlin replied vaguely, leaving Diane with no clue on her words' meaning.

The conversation was over and anything more would have only turned into pointless formalities. Since Merlin seemed to have no intent on sorting her mind any time soon, Diane left the Mage alone with her worries once more and walked over to King, Merlin's words still in her mind, lightening her steps and easing the pressure on her heart.

_A promise._

"You take care, you hear?" Diane overheard Ban say, before joining them. Harlequin's face lit up when he saw her, only for it to be overtaken by worry immediately thereafter.

"Diane, are you okay?" he asked, his tone matching his expression. He must have seen something in her eyes, and while his concern flattered her, there was absolutely nothing to worry about now.

"Yeah, I'm alright, silly," she ensured and added an honest smile while taking a hold of his hand. Their fingers intertwined, not for security, but for the simple prospect of being closer than before and the possibility of never being separated. In this very moment, they were able to look at each other eye to eye, with no difference in size or perspective separating them, and Diane remembered why she used the 'Shrinking Bracelet' in the first place.

Ban's coughing broke them out of their trancelike state of mind and reminded them that there was a world beyond just the two of them. "Not to interrupt your moment, but I'm gonna say bye to ya while you're still able to hear it."

"You're going to look for the Captain, aren't you?" King asked, not needing to look into the other's heart.

"Yeah, it's about time that bastard shows up again. He's been laying low for long enough. With the trouble in Camelot and all of this." Ban nodded at the graveyard to emphasize his point, but Diane was sure that Ban was just worrying about his best friend. She missed the Captain as well, but she was just as hopeful that he and Elizabeth were living a happy life now, where the commotions of the common world did not matter, and the eye could be tranquilly closed at the tyranny out there. Two souls moving within their own current.

"I'm sure they're alright," Diane said, laying all her hope into her words.

"Yeah, I'm sure you're right, Diane," Ban answered, not sounding half as convinced. "Well, I see ya around." Ban waved as he was walking away, holding on to the incredibly small chance that he could just stumble into the Captain one day and make the past thirty years of his absence disappear.

Gowther had been long gone, making King and Diane the last ones to bid farewell to Escanor's grave, leaving behind rows upon rows of stone-cold monuments, many of which serving to remind of the Holy War and those who had paid the ultimate price to ensure the human race's victory. In the midst of it stood Merlin, who was still looking into a past that was long lost, with no hopes of ever retrieving it.

~ : ~

Merlin had never considered herself to be one to dwell in the past, but it seemed things had changed. With Arthur, the precious feeling known as hope had died as well, leaving her with nothing to hold on to and nothing to work towards. She thought she had overcome this feeling of emptiness, and fighting the Demon Clan had given her a goal once more, albeit briefly. But with Escanor having left her world as well, the emptiness had returned, stronger than before, ready to sink its teeth into her flesh and into her heart.

The countless bottles and test tubes, books and artifacts that had once given her a sense quite similar to what others would call 'home', were now reduced to grim reminders of how much time she had wasted all her life. Over the course of three thousand years, Merlin had perfected her abilities as a Mage, studied more creatures than she could remember, and unraveled mysteries others had deemed impossible to solve.

And now it was all crumbling down before her.

How much she hated her laboratory now, and how much she wished for it to disappear, she could not find words for. It left her with only one option, but she was still hesitant, still clinging onto something that was long lost. Maybe it had never been there in the first place. When Merlin closed her eyes now, she could ignore the cries of rebellion in Camelot, the dying lights of the non-human clans, and the burning fires in the streets of Belialuin that followed her around wherever she went, even after all these years. When she closed her eyes now, there was peace and the pleasant illusion that her comrades, the other Sins, had their happiest days still ahead.

Merlin thought back to the look she had seen on Diane's face today, and it filled her with something that almost resembled her lost hope. This unparalleled longing and something that could only be love. Merlin wished she could have worn this expression as well.

But it was all too late, all cards had been played and all chances had gone by unused. With a thought and the snap of a finger, it could all be over.

Leaving no trace behind.

~ : ~

Over the course of the past years, Diane had begun to grow fonder of her new home, the Fairy King's Forest, and not even necessarily because of King and his presence that could be felt all around. In reality, she became accustomed to the sense of security, as well as the sheer vastness of the forest. She could wander around for days and always find a new place she had not discovered before, a hidden spring one day, a field of a thousand flowers the next. But despite all that, there was always something holding her back from calling it 'home'. A haunting feeling of being trapped, of not being able to breathe properly that overcame her sometimes. She had considered telling King about it, but in the end, there was nothing he could do about it, when even Diane herself struggled to find the source of discomfort she felt, and so, she decided against that.

It did not matter, anyways. Each time she caught a glimpse of Harlequin's smile or watched him sleep peacefully, like he had often done when their roles had been reversed, the pain disappeared, erased by feelings much more powerful.

Night had already settled in when Diane and King stepped out of the Sacred Tree that he had shown her today. He had waited with it for quite some time since, in order for her to gain access to the sanctuary of the Fairy Clan, Diane had been forced to use her 'Shrinking Bracelet'. She herself didn't mind to do so, but King was hell-bent on not discussing her size in any shape or form that could make her uncomfortable. Sometimes, he tended to overthink matters a little too much.

Diane had not only been at awe at the sight of the insides of the Sacred Tree with its muddled layout of bark and branches that appeared to be a living and breathing creature themselves, she had also never felt closer to King. As he had told her a bit shyly, this had been the place of his birth and also where he had been named as Fairy King.

Or it would have been, if it had not been burned down by a Red Demon over fifty years ago. The resemblance to the original Tree was remarkable, but from the look in his eyes, Diane could tell that it was not quite the same to King.

A constant reminder of his failures.

The mere existence of this version of the Fairy King's Forest was more Ban's achievement than anyone else's, and while King had mentioned how grateful he was to Ban, there was also something he had been holding back, something he didn't wish to talk about. Diane guessed that it had something to do with the one time he and Ban had gone to the Fairy King's Forest around the start of the new Holy War, but since he wasn't too eager talking about that incident either, she couldn't be sure.

Diane glanced upwards to the night sky, but all she could see were the crowns of the trees that, in this part of the forest, were growing so closely that they formed an organic ceiling made out of twigs and leaves. She sighed, wishing to be able to see the stars above just like she had done so often at the capital of the Giant Clan, Megadozer, when she had been a child. It felt like the life of someone else now, in which she had been nothing more than a spectator.

King, of course, took notice of her upswelling sadness, and floated past her, only to turn around and have a better look at her. Diane started before he could ask any questions. "I'm fine, really. I was just thinking about something."

He didn't seem too convinced. "You don't sound so fine. Is there anything I can do? Do you want to talk about it? Maybe that way –"

"It's not like you're telling me everything that's on your mind. I always have to guess what it is you're holding back from me, while you can just go on reading people's hearts like you please!" She didn't mean to say it like that, but Diane often felt at a disadvantage since King seemed to always know what she was thinking. Regardless, it was unfair to treat him this way, and Diane regretted her words right away.

"I never intend to read your heart, Diane, and I always try to stop myself. I'm just not that good with controlling it," King said, a bit perplexed, but also glad that they were at least talking about the issue without letting it consume them from the inside out.

"I know you're not doing it on purpose, I'm sorry," Diane sighed, feeling terrible for bringing the subject up. It had not even been the reason why she got angry in the first place.

King smiled at her. "Don't worry. And the thing I didn't want to talk about –" He paused. "Well, when I first got to see this version of the Fairy King's Forest, I was so incredibly happy. But the other Fairies treated me exactly like I had felt when I saw the burnt ruins of the original Forest. Like a failure of a king. They even called Ban the new 'Fairy King'; not that he wanted that. And with this Sacred Tree, I just always have to think that maybe this should all be his. After all he's done to create it. I – I'm sure, Elaine would have liked that."

"King, I –" She didn't know what to say to him.

They never liked to talk about Elaine, even after all these years. Ban had tried everything possible to a human or an immortal, but in the end, all efforts had been for nothing, and she had faded away from this world that hadn't been hers since her life had been cut short by the hands of a Demon. It had been Ban who had suggested for her body to serve as a replacement for the Fountain of Youth, deep within the chambers of the Sacred Tree, and she was giving life to the Forest ever since.

"I'm sorry you have to feel this way," Diane finally continued.

"It's okay, really," King said, his smile only showing the slightest crack of uncertainty. "But now I went on talking about myself, when I just wanted to know what you were thinking about." Diane looked up to him as he was taking hold of her hand, and the warmth of his smile, relentlessly encouraging, made her feel dizzy for a moment, as if she had too much of a good drink.

"I – just wanted to see the stars," she whispered. Next to the things Harlequin's mind had to bear, her worries sounded so insignificant to her, the hollow wish of a child.

But Harlequin didn't treat her words like those of a child. Instead, he grinned a bit as an idea was starting to take shape in his head and made Chastifol appear out of thin air. He directed the pillow-shaped Sacred Treasure to float next to her feet, and gestured with his free hand towards it.

"Hop on then," he said, his tone lacking any indication of a cheap joke, making Diane shake her head violently as she guessed his intention. This was a terrible idea.

"King, I'm gonna fall off," she tried to protest, only for her complaint to dissolve.

"I promise you won't."

Diane reluctantly stepped onto the pillow, now standing unsteadily on something that was continuously giving away under her weight, at least partially. It was making her feel a bit uneasy, but at the same time she was relishing in excitement. King had placed both her hands on his shoulders, giving her another source of stability and something to hold onto. Her heart was running a marathon.

With a nod from her, signaling him that she was ready, King directed his Sacred Treasure slowly upwards, while floating at the same pace, towards the sky above, Diane leaning against him. She forced herself to not look down, with the fear of vertigo overcoming her suddenly. But her worries passed just as fast as they had appeared, the extasy of _flying _dominating her thoughts, and when she looked up instead, she found them to be way past the treetops without her having realized it.

The view was spectacular. A million stars lighting up the night sky, not hidden away by clouds or overshadowed by any lights from the surface. Where she expected the air to be cold, she found it to be warm and welcoming instead, as if someone had just waited for them to show up and take in the marvelous scenery. Diane followed a single shooting star with her eyes on its way over the horizon, only for it to burn out and break into a thousand pieces, falling down to earth in complete silence.

She moved her eyes towards Harlequin again and saw that he had blacked out the world around him to only look at her, taking in every change of awe in her expression as if it were the last time he could see something of pure wonder. The starlight reflected in his eyes.

Carefully, he raised his left hand to lean against her cheek, his thumb caressing her skin. The space between them shrunk down to a fraction, until it was non-existent, as their faces leaned towards each other, and Diane sealed his lips with hers.

They had kissed before, but it had never been like this, something had always held back at least one of them, but here, above the world with only the stars as silent watchers, it was an entirely different sensation. For the first time she could fully embrace and lean against him without any fear of breaking his fragile form apart. His scent of gold Osmanthus was overflooding her senses until it reached a point of sweet suffocation. She didn't want the moment to end, as for once in her life she felt like nothing could hurt her, and all her dreams were in close reach. She only needed to stretch out her hand.

"I'll always love you," she heard Harlequin say, after they had parted just enough to allow him to speak. Diane only tightened the grip around his shoulders.

"You don't have to remind me – this time I do remember." She closed her eyes, still caught in the moment and the kiss. "I love you, Harlequin."

She felt his overwhelming feelings for her and for the simple matter that she had called him by his actual name, the name that she had known him by in simpler times. For her, this single word was equivalent to a sacred spell that was to be said out loud sparingly, for otherwise it could lose its power. It made her feel like she could look into his heart for just one moment longer.

~ : ~

The message reached them the next morning via Gerheade, who was presenting a letter to the Fairy King. "A representative of Liones brought it to the outskirts of the Fairy King's Forest earlier today," Gerheade explained, while King was eyeing the crest on the front of the envelope, clearly showcasing that of the kingdom of Liones.

"From Hector," he murmured before starting to read.

Diane still felt a little sleepy, with the events of last night having constantly repeated themselves in her head until everything had become blurry, and the meaning of it all had escaped her mind for a moment or two. She hid a yawn behind her hand as she was studying King's face, his head tilted sideways while he was reading. She waited until his expression finally showed relief, only for him to float up to her, handing the letter over. His efforts were pointless, however, since Diane, now back to her normal size, had immense trouble deciphering the tiny, meticulous handwriting.

And he summarized the content for her anyway. "Hector writes that Agravaine has finally agreed to the negotiations of the peace treaty Liones has offered him. This means that the border war between Liones and Camelot will be over soon!"

Diane remembered that, a few years prior, the self-proclaimed King of Camelot, Agravaine, had risen from the ashes of the revolution set in the capital of Camelot. All members of the royal court had been executed by extremists during or after the uprising, pathing the way for the greatly admired Agravaine to take the throne. The somewhat reclaimed stability was tumbling again, however, as King Agravaine and his followers had started to raid villages of Liones kingdom located near the border separating the two lands. And what had begun small, soon revealed itself to be a legitimate invasion by Camelot, leaving the newly crowned King Hector of Liones no choice but to react. The conflict between the neighboring kingdoms over land and power was feared to turn into an all-out war, with the Holy Knights from both sides engaging in skirmishes almost on a daily basis. But now, with the promise this letter held, the peace might return to Britannia.

"I'm glad Agravaine has finally come to his senses," Diane said with a smile, before gesturing at the letter King was now holding again. "Does it say anything else?"

King, apparently not having bothered finishing the text, ruefully concentrated on the message again, his gleaming expression turning a bit sour towards the end. "Hector asks me to be present during the negotiations. Apparently, Agravaine has agreed for someone neutral to oversee the whole thing."

Diane understood his reservation. Even as the Fairy King, he had tried to get involved with human politics as little as possible, despite their kings and leaders having certain expectations regarding the king of the entire Fairy Clan. Hector in particular had asked for King's assistance and even guidance a few times, especially after the death of his farther and the swirling conflict with Camelot. But despite the Seven Deadly Sins' alignment with the kingdom of Liones during the Holy War, King had always tried to keep the Fairy Clan out of the conflicts of the human world, wishing for it to return to the state of peace he had known before the revival of the Demon Clan.

And while Diane could relate to that, the importance of this upcoming meeting was overshadowing his own interests and even those of the entire Fairy Race because the fate of Britannia as a whole was likely on the line.

"Then you should go," Diane said reassuringly, before adding, "And I'll go with you," without even thinking about it.

King looked even more uncomfortable now, making her inadvertently flinch. "That's the thing. Hector doesn't want to provoke Agravaine in any possible way. He says that with the recent attack from Giants in Camelot it would be better if you – if you wouldn't go." He looked at her again, his eyes screaming a million apologies at her, but Diane was seeing right through him.

She believed King or maybe Gerheade had mentioned this attack, but at the time, she hadn't put too much thought into it other than pity for the Giants that were bound by their traditions and were unable to look beyond the past. Nowadays, she rarely identified herself with the Giant Clan anymore, and to be reminded of her physical appearance, her _otherness_, like this, hurt her more than she liked to admit.

Harlequin must have read her pain in her eyes, as he started to ramble. "I won't go then, I promise, I'll send a message to Hector, they can ask someone else, and –"

"No. You should go. This peace treaty is more important than any of us. Stop troubling yourself over me for a second." She tilted her head and smiled at him. "You worry too much."

She hated the thought of being separated from him. But looking at him and imagining the future that would come to be, gave her the strength she needed to say these necessary words out loud. After this, they could finally turn their backs to the fighting and live peacefully, like they had in her most precious memories of the days when they had been younger. And wasn't that worth the hardship?

Harlequin stayed reluctant to leave, even after Diane convinced him three separate times that she would be just fine. Because Hector's letter had been on such short notice, Harlequin would have to leave the same day in order to be on time for the negotiations between the two kings.

Diane joined him on his way towards the very edge of the Fairy King's Forest. And despite urging him to go herself, she wasn't ready to part from him. Letting him go, no matter how insignificant the timespan, inevitably reminded her of the time she watched him go, only to lose him and all memories of him for two hundred years. She fought the thought back down into the depths of her heart. This time, she wouldn't let the sadness overwhelm her, this time she would smile. For him.

They paused under the last tree bound to the Fairy King's Forest, the grand open landscape ahead, waiting for a signal of fate to indicate that it was indeed time, but nothing reached their ears except for the soft singing of a nearby bird.

Harlequin turned mid-air to face her at eye-level, the light catching in his Fairy wings, creating a cascade of colors. Wordlessly, he extended an arm, his palm facing her. Diane slowly raised her own hand and let her index finger rest against his entire hand, the warmth of his touch resonating through her arm and then her entire body, the sensation overflowing her nervous system. Their foreheads touched, two minds and hearts connected, the skin and bones separating them made irrelevant.

"It won't be longer than three days, I promise," Harlequin murmured, before continuing steadier. "I want you to take care of the Forest for me. Because there is no one else I trust more than you. With everything."

Diane knew that, as the Fairy King's representative, Gerheade would have been a much better fit, and she also knew how much the Fairy King's Forest meant to Harlequin. Because of that, she was even more grateful for the trust he put in her. Somehow, it made the pain feel more distant as they parted, with him gifting her a gleaming smile.

His silhouette had already grown small, as Diane finally opened her mouth for a response. "Thank you," she whispered into the world, but he was already too far away to hear her.

As she turned around, back to the Forest and away from the shining sunlight, the image in her head of a small tavern on a hill slowly faded away, a dream giving way to reality.

* * *

Thanks for reading, I hope you enjoyed.

As you can see with Elaine still being dead, this story diverts from later manga chapters; pretty much everything beyond chapter 280 isn't relevant to this story. I originally came up with the idea way back after finishing the second season, before I even read the manga. I've tweaked the story a little bit to fit some character changes (especially King's) but only so far.

Thanks to Miracle X for helping out with the cover and for giving me some feedback and encouragement, even though he has no idea who these characters are.


	3. I can't seem to reach you

_Can't you sleep?_

Diane slowly opened her eyes, unwilling to let the dream escape her mind so soon. The sun had already made the first part of its way over the horizon, indicating that she had slept far into the day.

The second day without him.

This meant that Harlequin should have arrived at the capital of Liones by now. Or maybe it was the third day already, and he was already on his way back? She couldn't tell with the cloudiness of sleep still hanging over her thoughts, but the possibility brought a smile to Diane's lips as she sat up.

Still, the last words of her dream kept lingering in the back of her mind. They didn't originate from the dream at all but from her memories instead.

Harlequin had asked her this very question at the last night they had shared, before he had headed to the capital of Liones and the negotiations of the peace treaty between it and Camelot. As a response to his question, she had shaken her head while taking in his facial features that had still been visible, despite the dark hour. Back then, neither of them had known of the separation they would have to endure.

Diane rubbed the remnants of sleep out of her eyes to take a better look at her surroundings. The clearing, where she and Harlequin usually slept, closely located to the Sacred Tree, looked the same as it usually did, minus his glaring absence. And the small flower that was growing right at its center. Diane carefully laid one finger against the fragile plant, marveling at its beauty. A violet.

The very same night, when Diane had been unable to sleep or even take her eyes of him, Harlequin had created this very flower using his magical ability, Disaster. The fact that the flower's appearance closely resembled her own eye-color, didn't pass her by unnoticed, but when asking him about it, he had only said that there couldn't be a comparison. She hadn't been sure what to make out of his words, but to her the violet was a symbol of his affections regardless, and while looking its vibrantly colored blooms, Diane couldn't help but notice that it had now almost become his parting gift to her, something to remember him by. As if she needed something to remind her of him when everything around her already did.

The leaves catching the light above her head, the soft grass covering the clearing, the scent of the forest itself, all of it belonged to the memories she had made with Harlequin over the past thirty years, forever linked to one of the most dearly beloved times she ever had the chance to share with him.

She missed him. And she loved him.

Unconditionally.

Diane decided to go for a walk to ease her mind and maybe think of something else, even if just for a short while. After all, the time wouldn't go by faster by just sitting around and waiting. And so, she just walked, one step at a time, humming a tune that she had forgotten the origin of.

~ : ~

From the very moment he had stepped into the throne room of Liones, he had sensed that something wasn't right. First off, Hector was nowhere to be seen, even though King had been sure that he himself had already arrived later than he should have. And second, the pressure of the unknown magical force that he had felt for quite a while now had suddenly amplified tenfold. A shiver ran down his spine that had nothing to do with the temperature.

He made his way halfway through the room, passing two Holy Knights of Liones stationed closely to the marble pillars aligned in two rows over the length of the hall. Presumably to provide a last line of defense for their king, once he would arrive. Ahead of him, on the other side of the throne room, stood a single man that could only be the new King of Camelot, Agravaine.

There was an arrogance in his gaze and a swirling pool of darkness in his heart that King had previously only seen within the Demon Race, and he wondered if the presence of this man alone was the cause for the surge of dark magic he felt.

Agravaine's attention was now entirely fixed on the Fairy King, studying him with an unnatural intensity before curling his lips to a smile in a manner that seemed entirely inhuman. "Fairy King Harlequin, it is an honor to finally meet you. I am dearly grateful that you are able to attend this historical moment."

His grimace of a smile grew even wider, and in the same instance, all hell was breaking loose.

King sensed the danger a fraction of a second before it reached him in the form of two daggers, aimed at his head and his heart, and only this time advantage prevented him from certain death. One of the weapons still hit its target, albeit only with a graze at his left shoulder. Simultaneously to the attack – initiated by the two humans that had emerged from the shadows of the room – he felt a sudden lack of magic control, and then he noticed how the room had changed around him, a purple aura wavering in the air to all sides. The familiar shape was undeniable; a Perfect Cube.

And with that, King saw himself at a serious disadvantage. Before entering the throne room, he had been instructed to leave his Sacred Treasure outside, due to no weapons being allowed at the meeting. He hadn't given much thought to it, convinced that if something were to happen, the simple wooden door would hardly be a hindrance for him. But now, being trapped inside the magical barrier, there was no way to reach out to Chastifol, because whoever had created the Perfect Cube clearly had advanced magical abilities. Breaking the spell would therefore take him precious time and energy and would prove to be quite difficult while fending off two attackers.

He thought about all that in the matter of a moment – too long to do anything for the two knights that had been trapped inside the Perfect Cube with them. With a perfectly coordinated attack, the two adversaries struck down both guards before they even had time to realize the threat. The twin-daggers shot through the air, slicing throats before returning to their owners, with an amount of precision only possible through the use of magic.

While bracing for an upcoming strike, King noticed the symbol both men were showcasing on the gauntlets of their robes. He recognized it immediately, and if even possible, his chances revealed themselves to be even bleaker than he had initially thought.

The symbol – a poisonous viper aiming to swallow a crown – belonged to the Assassination Guild of Orkney, a group of infamous mercenaries known for their magical abilities and ruthlessness. Years ago, the Seven Deadly Sins had managed to prevent one member from assassinating King Bartra, but regardless of their clear victory, the man had displayed immense prowess and resolve. And now, King had to face off against two of them without his Sacred Treasure.

While suspending parts of his concentration on breaking the enemy's control over the Perfect Cube, King evaded another assault by the daggers. He mentally reached out to alter the course of one of the deadly weapons, but he underestimated the assassin's control over it; it was like fighting against someone behind three brick build walls of mental protection. The daggers also seemed to only respond to the will of its actual masters, similar to the Sacred Treasures the Sins wielded. There was already little organic material in the weapons' hilts that he could reach out to, and their inherent loyalty only added to the problem.

When the dagger was on its way of returning to its owner after the next attack, King entirely focused on the curved, jagged blade and managed to tear a hole into the mental walls, gaining the upper hand for just a split second, altering its destination by one degree or two. And when the assassin intended to catch the weapon by its hilt, he miscalculated, slightly cutting his palm.

More than enough.

With Disaster, he took over the man's circular blood system, sending an entire river of the red liquid towards the open gash. The assassin stared in horror as a fountain of blood poured out of the cut that shouldn't even have been a hinderance in this fight.

With a wave of his fingers, King concentrated the droplets of released blood to a single sphere, increasing its density a hundred times over. And while the man was still looking at his hand, terrified and unable to comprehend what was happening, King sent the sphere right at his opponent, with enough force to tear through skin and flesh and heart, killing the man instantly.

The second assassin growled as he watched his partner being taken down by an invisible force and shifted his own stance to a more defensive position.

With the benefit of flight, King had so far been able to avoid direct contact, but the intense usage of magical energy was draining his strength, and he was beginning to feel dizzy, black spots lingering at the edge of his peripheral vision. Even still, he sent more of his energy into overriding the spell that was caging him. Just now he noticed that there was a second incantation, one aiming to drain the magic out of those unlucky enough to get caught in it. This explained why King was feeling so exhausted, but it also led him to a far more dangerous conclusion.

The number of factors at play, the spells, the Assassination Guild, the fact that he had been instructed on entering the room without any weapons – all of it indicated that this assault had long been planned, by people with enough influence to hire a pair of nefarious assassins and infiltrate Liones' castle. But what for? Had he been the main target or Hector? If this trap had been set up by Agravaine, then what could he gain by attacking the Fairy King?

The racing questions filling up his head caused King to lose focus for a moment, giving the remaining assassin the opportunity he had been waiting for. The man threw his dagger while picking up the one from his fallen comrade. And as King shifted to dodge the first attack, leaving his right side wide open, the second dagger found its target at last, tearing through the Fairy King's wings with the same ease as if it were the thinnest possible fabric.

King expected to feel pain, but he only lost a few feet of height as he fought back another wave of dull nausea. Maybe his senses were starting to go numb.

The metallic smell of blood filled the air.

With newfound confidence, due to his successful last strike, the assassin closed in on him. Having anticipated this very move, King waited a few seconds longer before starting his counter-attack, sending the abandoned second dagger with a swift motion of his hand right at the man, forcing him to block the sudden strike with his own weapon.

And then, finally, the Perfect Cube dissolved into nothingness.

Distracted by the change in their environment, the remaining assassin regained his composure a little too late, as King drew the dagger in his mental grasp right through the man's skull. With a faint thump, the lifeless assassin dropped over, putting an end to the fight.

His own body feeling frail, King sank to the floor, his trembling legs nearly collapsing under his own weight. Fighting for air, he drew in one staggered breath and tried to focus on his surroundings. But when his vision cleared, the purple aura remained all around him, caging him once more. His racing mind presented an answer instantly:

A Perfect Cube inside a Perfect Cube.

A perfect trap that he had been so sure to have escaped, and the dark claws of panic reached around his heart, slowly crushing it in its fierce grip. He couldn't die here, he had to get back to the Fairy King's Forest, back to Diane. He had promised to her that he would come back to her, and there was nothing more important than keeping this promise.

It was the only thing that had ever mattered.

His head jerked up as his ears picked up on a faint sound, reaching him through the clouds blocking his grasp on the world around him. He spun around, and then there was Agravaine, driving his sword into King's injured shoulder. King stumbled backwards, blood running down his arm, his fingers going numb, unable to defend himself.

Agravaine looked at him, a solemn expression on his face. "You have my respect, Fairy King. It seems as though I have underestimated your magical abilities when you dispelled my Perfect Cube. But I'm afraid there can only be one outcome to this. I have waited too long than to be halted by your resolve."

His words not quite faded away, Agravaine dashed forward, cutting and slicing through air relentlessly as King retreated backwards, again and again. He was left with no time to breathe, much less to counter any attack.

But there was nowhere to run, and even though he tried to override Agravaine's control over the Perfect Cube a second time, the wall he faced against had been rebuild, stronger and higher than before, and his strength was leaving him.

And suddenly, he couldn't fall back any further, his back against the magical barrier. Agravaine smiled triumphantly as he swung his sword over his head, aiming to cut the Fairy in front of him in half. King raised his right hand in one final effort, stopping the blade mid-air, just before it reached him. For a moment, attacker and defender looked at each other, desperation and determination clashing in an entirely different battle. And then King's strength collapsed in on itself, his world bathing in crimson.

The outside world had gone blurry, and he barely noticed lying on cold, hard stone, the enemy lurking at the periphery of his numbed vision. Images flashed before his eyes as if to remind him what he was fighting for and why he had to make it out alive. Gloxinia, Helbram, Oslo, and then Diane, over and over again, reminding him of what he had lost and what he had yet to lose, those that had given their lives for him and the one that he couldn't bear to see go.

And he had failed them all. Made their sacrifices worthless and rendered their trust in him a pointless effort.

Faintly, he could hear a child's voice calling through the shadows._Stay with me, always – don't leave me by myself._

The tear escaping his eyelids felt cold.

"I'm sorry, Diane," he whispered into the dark, knowing full-well that she would never hear him. He tried one last time to push himself up, but the Fairy King's Forest, the source of his power, the reason for his determination, the one person he would love for all eternity – it was all so far away. In this very moment he was unimaginably grateful that she had stayed back. She would be safe.

Calm settled over him as he slowly breathed out, his mind still holding on to a pair of violet-colored eyes, reflecting the setting sun.

~ : ~

Maybe she should have worried sooner.

Should have known something had happened when the days went by, daylight turning into darkness and then daylight again. Should have seen the change in the forest around her as it seemed fall had settled over this world for the very first time. Should have felt something.

But she never did.

And so, Diane just went on with her daily life, wandering through the forest, dancing the Dance of the Giant King, in ignorance of the larger world out there. She waited for him to return, but she had lost her sense of time once more, and after the promised three days were over, she simply waited one day longer.

Whenever Diane danced, she felt entirely aligned with the world around her, each step, each turn, each spin in accordance with the flow of the earth. She could feel the vitality of the Fairy King's Forest around her, could feel the spirits and life essences of a thousand beings around, and sometimes she could even feel Elaine's faint energy beneath the Sacred Tree, a shining source of light invisible to the human eye.

Today, however, there was a bleakness all around her, like an enormous cloud casting a shadow over the forest, blocking the sun. The strange atmosphere made it difficult for Diane to concentrate, and after tripping over her own feet a second time, she gave up, frustrated with her poor performance. She huffed at herself for being so clumsy and started to walk towards the Sacred Tree, in hopes of getting some news on King's whereabouts. Maybe he had already returned and had been looking for her while she had just wandered around, aimlessly.

The thought made her fasten her pace a little, hope resonating from every breath she took in. Having already moved on from the letdown of her unsuccessful dancing, she giggled softly as a dry leaf that might have once been a faint shade of magenta got stuck in her hair, and she slowed down again to pry it out.

Then, all of a sudden, something soared past her head, her instincts reacting just in time to enable her to see an arrow flying in an unnatural straight line roughly towards her own goal, the Sacred Tree. Baffled by the occurrence, Diane made an effort to catch up to the arrow that seemed to be controlled by magic, flying farther and more coordinated than any normal arrow should.

When she reached the Sacred Tree a little out of breath, she saw Gerheade and a second Fairy gathered around something at the outer bark of the gigantic tree. While she couldn't understand what they were saying, Diane could see Gerheade gesticulate at the second Fairy, and when one of them shifted, Diane spotted the arrow from before in Gerheade's hands.

She was about to attempted to call out to them when the unknown Fairy turned around abruptly and started to race to somewhere before stopping dead in his tracks, right in front of Diane; he had apparently not realized her presence until the very last moment.

The initial shock gave way to a miserable expression as he started to spill out words senselessly. "I'm sorry, I didn't look where I was going. Actually, I was supposed to go looking for you – but I mean now you're already here. And that means she can tell you herself, and – ah, Gerheade wanted to talk to you, so –"

The rest of his rambling was cut short by Gerheade, who had floated towards them after noticing the commotion. She first turned to the other Fairy.

"You should try to collect yourself first. We can handle all this later. Just… not now." Her voice sounded completely monotone, as if something had made her age a thousand years in the span of a day, and she didn't have the energy to talk anymore.

As the younger Fairy flew away, Gerheade silently handed over the parchment that she had clutched within her hands, alongside the arrow. The single page was entirely occupied by two lines of text, written in bold letters.

_Fairy King Harlequin is dead._

_Long live King Agravaine of Camelot._

A Lie.

That was the only thing this piece of text, that she was holding between two fingers without seeing it anymore, could be. A terrible joke someone made to throw her off-guard, to test her reaction. Diane shook her head in denial. This could not possibly be true, it had to be a lie.

But when Diane looked up at Gerheade, the face of the Fairy revealed nothing except for the crushing reality that she believed in these deceiving words. Her single eye bared a silent desperation that was living deep inside of her and that had just been brought to the surface once more. Diane knew of all that the Fairy had once lost, and it seemed that had made her vulnerable to tragedy, to the point where she no longer doubted the worst could happen. But it could not be true. He had promised to return to her, and Harlequin had been – rather _was_ – so determined to keep his promise this time that there was no argument to be made.

Gerheade stared blankly into the middle-distance, and when she spoke, all strength had drained from her voice. "I – I don't know what to do."

"You can't really believe this! King – he can't be dead. This is just a trick from Agravaine to destabilize us. It's not true."

Gerheade now looked at her, her expression bar any hope. "Look around you, Diane. The Fairy King's Forest is dying because it lost its protector. Because Harlequin is dead. I haven't been able to feel his presence for the last two days."

Diane shook her head again, more furiously this time. He wasn't dead. And if she admitted that he might be, that Gerheade had a point in what she said, then she would condemn him to being dead, to never being able to come back to her, to never fulfill all the promises he had made towards her.

Diane closed her mind to the arching pain in her heart, unable to grasp what was slowly dawning on her. That maybe it wasn't a lie after all. And that she had lost what was dearest to her. That Harlequin had died, and she hadn't been with him.

But the last glimmer of hope still remained in the form of his lively smile, that it wasn't too late, and that the all the bright things, the future she had envisioned to await her hadn't just vanished out of existence.

That her world hadn't just shattered into a million fragments.

~ : ~

His body was brought to the Fairy King's Forest by three knights of Camelot, later that same day. It seemed as though the entirety of the Fairy Clan had gathered in the shadows of the outer trees, silently watching as the broken form of their king was laid to the ground in front of them. No one said a word, and no one even flinched as the knights made their way back to wherever they had come from, leaving only unending silence behind.

Diane couldn't keep her eyes from him.

Even from where she was standing, she could see the pain his body had endured. His clothes were blood-soaked, his Fairy wings torn to shreds or missing entirely. Cuts and bruises covered every visible inch of skin. His eyes were closed, yet she couldn't help herself from imagining him looking at her with the cold, unseeing stare of the dead.

And even now no one moved, the Fairies transfixed by an invisible force of desolation that only enabled them to look in horror.

Without her mind giving her the order to do so, Diane stepped out of the forest, knowing full well of the staring eyes upon her but ignoring them entirely. If one of them made a sound to hold her back, she couldn't hear them. She kneeled down beside him and carefully picked his fragile form up with her Giant hand.

Harlequin looked as though every bone in his body had been broken twice, his form mangled unnaturally, and the pain inside her grew when all she could do was carefully stroking his hair, the color of autumn leaves stained by crimson. He looked younger in death, more vulnerable than she had ever seen him, thrown into the dark abyss from where there was no escape, no return.

Every step she made led her deeper into the Forest, further away from the other Fairies and further away from the cruel world of humans out there that only knew how to take, never gave. She stumbled once, twice, never looking away from him, internally begging him to wake up, to open his eyes, to tell her it had all been a bad dream, until she fell to her knees and couldn't stop the tears from falling anymore.

She was choking, felt like suffocating, trying to call his name but always failing to do so, as the devastation and realization build up inside her, shattering her composure.

"King," she coughed out between two rasping breaths, looking at him, wishing to every might in this universe to turn back time, to make it undone.

"King. King! HARLEQUIN!" she cried, holding onto the faint illusion that he could still, somehow, hear her, that she could pull him back from the depths that he had fallen into.

She didn't realize lying down, all strength having left her apart from her hands still holding him to her chest, next to her heart. His voice reached her from a far distance, a life that was now forever lost to her.

_Can't you sleep?_

_No – I can't wake up._

* * *

No one regrets this turn of events more than I do. I'm sorry.


	4. I wanted to say more

In her dreams, Harlequin was still alive.

They would play tag just like they used to when they had been younger, when the world had been colorful. He would float in front of her, just out of reach, and tease her to come try and catch him, but he would always be too fast for her to catch up, the distance ever growing between them until she lost his silhouette between the trees.

And then, he would come back out of nowhere, smiling brightly, promising to let her win next time, that she could ask for a wish the next time she would catch him. And she would laugh and tell him that she already had everything she could wish for.

In her dreams there was always a happy ending to look forward to.

Until she woke up, and the happy ending fell to pieces under the crushing weight of reality. The bitter reality that Harlequin was dead, and the hand she had been holding while sleeping, even though it had been his, would never hold hers again.

Fairy King Harlequin would be put to rest beside his sister, inside the catacomb located between the roots of the Sacred Tree, but so far, Diane hadn't had the courage to let him go entirely. Rather, she had asked Gerheade to allow her to stay with him, in the chamber within the Sacred Tree, and, having shrunk down to human size, Diane had waited beside him for something, anything to happen that could give her the strength to bid farewell.

After his wounds had been treated, he almost looked like he was just sleeping. Even after their death the body of any Fairy could stand the test of time for centuries, unaffected by the central force of time itself. How ironic, while their soul was long dead, for their shells to live on. But this particular oddity only strengthened the illusion that Harlequin was just asleep, for his skin didn't even feel cold. It lacked the warmth Diane had once felt radiating from him, but his hands had adjusted to the temperature around them, like a tree having saved up the warmth and sunlight of a hot summers day to make it through the cold winter months.

It made it even more difficult to believe that he would never wake up again.

The Fairy Clan had mourned over his death for one day, casting an eerie calm around the Forest, only for them to move on with their pitiful lives the very next morning. Out of necessity, or so they said. Someone else had been chosen as Fairy King by the Sacred Tree, someone Diane couldn't care to remember the name of, and if she had taken a look around outside, she would have seen that the Forest was slowly healing again. But that fact was nearly irrelevant to her now.

What mattered more to her was that Gerheade had assured her that she could stay within the Fairy King's Forest for as long as she chose to. And since she had nowhere else to go, Diane was grateful that there was at least something left for her. Though she wasn't sure how much longer she could endure all of this.

Her gaze drifted naturally to the soft features of his face, examining it once more even though every part of it was already burned into her memory.

"I know you didn't want to lie to me. But you still broke your promise, King. So now would be a really good time to apologize, don't you think?" Her voice sounded foreign to her, a stranger speaking the words she had formed in her head. And for an answer she only received more silence, from him and the rest of the world.

"Do you think Meliodas and Elizabeth are doing well? And the other Sins – we haven't seen them in years. From wherever you are you can probably see them, right? Then why don't you tell me what they are up to right now? You – you could at least give me a sign that you can still hear me. That you didn't leave me alone. You promised that you would never do that to me again…"

She despised how the words coming out of her mouth sounded as she was fully aware of how hollow they were, and she was the only one that would ever hear them. But the silence was even worse, and Diane felt like she had to fill it with the sound of her voice if nothing else, so that the emptiness closing in all around her wouldn't overwhelm her entirely.

Tears started to well up again, but she fought them down. After all, she knew how terrible King always felt when he had to see her cry. Instead she forced her lips to form a smile even though it hurt and most likely looked incredibly grotesque.

"The thing is, I really need to tell you something. You remember, on that day you left, you said you would trust me with everything. And I wanted to thank you for your trust and for the strength you gave me and… and there was more than that. It's just that… it slipped my mind just now. You know how terrible my memory can be. I – I'm sure it'll come back to me."

Diane couldn't keep the smile up any longer, and she no longer had the strength to talk, to build up the façade that constantly came tumbling down, despite all her efforts. A veil of despair came to rest over her world for a little while that could just as well have been eternity. And when her eyes learned how to focus again, she found that small droplets of water were resting on King's cheeks. How they got there she couldn't tell, but she felt an approaching headache paired with overwhelming exhaustion, and it hadn't rained all day.

~ : ~

This was presumably about the hundredth town he had stopped by to look for the Captain. It barely even qualified as a town, but since it had one main road leading all the way to the coast and the towns poor equivalent of a port, and at least one shady bar, it was as good of a town as any other for Ban. Figuring that information would be easiest to obtain in said shady bar, the former Sin of Greed directed his steps towards it.

_The Wish Maker_. How charming.

Ban headed straight for the counter, only briefly examining the other customers, a mixed bag of farmers, merchants, and some low-ranked soldiers of Liones. As far as he was concerned there was still a war going on with Camelot, so why these members of the military were currently hanging out in a bar in some no-name village was beyond him. Maybe they at least had something interesting to tell.

"Hey barkeep'," Ban snapped at the old man behind the counter. "You got any information on a tavern called the Boar Hat? Travels around a lot, usually on a giant pig."

The man narrowed his eyes, examining the potential customer. "Never heard of that. You just here to ask questions, or you wan' a drink?"

Apparently, one had to pay for information in this rotten hole, as Ban had already suspected. "Yeah, sure, whatever ale you got."

After having been handed over some sour excuse for the word ale, Ban tried his luck with the barkeeper again, despite his better judgement. "So, you've heard of the Boar Hat? I'm also looking for someone, a short blond kid, goes by the name of Meliodas. Probably hangs out with a silver-haired girl and a talking pig."

"Never heard of him," the barkeeper growled in perfect unfriendly barkeeper fashion, proving the name of his pub a lie. The man was either lying or so dense that he had actually never heard of the Captain of the Seven Deadly Sins, both options equally unhelpful for Ban.

With a sigh, he settled down on one of the plentiful unoccupied stools aligned at the counter and took another sip of his drink. And while it certainly wasn't Vanya Ale – if it even was ale at all –, Ban was thankfully also not here to get drunk, so the awful taste served him quite well. Instead he focused on the folk at the other tables, specifically their conversations.

He had established this routine for himself quite a long time ago, always keeping an ear open for strange encounters with giant pigs, or stories about horrendous food served at a tavern that had appeared overnight out of nowhere, even though he couldn't even be certain that the Captain and Elizabeth were still running a tavern. And for the past four years, since he had headed out from the capital of Liones, he had never been lucky enough to get even a faint trace on the Captain's whereabouts. The only thing his detours into bars like this had been good for, had been getting news on the state of the rest of Britannia, for example the nearing escalation of the Liones-Camelot-conflict that was reaching a concerning level.

Just another reason why Ban had to find the Captain, to talk some sense into him for ditching Britannia – and also to punch him in the face for being so annoyingly hard to find.

He overheard a whole lot of uninteresting talk about the debt of a farmer, the constantly rising prices for goods from the south, and, as to be expected, complaints about the lousy weather. Ban was practically on his way out the door, when he finally caught something of interest, an exchange between two men at the corner table furthest away from him.

"– that idiot Hector's gonna get us all killed, I say. Starting a war just 'cause some Fairy got killed," the older one said, his tongue clearly loosened by alcohol.

"That's right, I mean, those Fairy folks have never done nothin' for us, and now we're supposed to fight with Camelot? If ya ask me, he got what he deserved, that Fairy. Should rather give a medal to King Agravaine than go to war with him."

"Hear, hear!" the first one cried drunkenly as the two men toasted to each other.

Intrigued and slightly worried because of the apparent fallout between Hector and Agravaine, Ban walked over to their table and firmly settled down next to the two drunkards.

"Couldn't overhear ya talking about Agravaine. So, what's that guy been up to?", Ban asked, trying to match their drunken tones to blend in better despite being currently very sober.

"Ya heard of this big peace conference he had with Hector?", the younger man began excitedly, not the least bit concerned about the stranger interrogating him. "Well, turns out this Fairy there, he got himself killed, and now Hector blames Agravaine and calls for war. Dunno why, but probably just needed some excuse for it."

"And this Fairy, who was he?", Ban asked, an uncomfortable sense of foreboding crawling up his spine.

"Well, the Fairy King, that's what I've been tellin' ya."

Ban froze as his world turned upside down, and he felt like falling into an abyss that he hadn't even known of until it opened up beneath his feet.

King was dead. Just like that.

And if Escanor's death had uncomfortably reminded him of his own immortality, and the Captain's absence constantly reminded him that what they had had with the Seven Deadly Sins had never been meant to last, then King's death reminded him that he was forever cursed with watching his friends and all that he had ever known and cared for disappear in front of him. Sooner rather than later.

Only reluctantly his senses allowed the outside world back in, to make sense out of the blurring words spelled out in front of him. "– heard that they hung him up over the main gate for three days. Probably scared those folks in the capital senseless. And those Holy Knights couldn't do nothin' about it." The man laughed as if this had been the best joke all week.

"Nah, you got that all wrong. That traveler, from yesterday, he said he came right from the capital, and he's seen these Camelot men drag him 'round the whole place one night. Said he heard the Fairy screaming his heart out."

Ban felt like screaming himself or punching those dumb peasants in their dumb faces or rip Agravaine's heart out, just anything that didn't make him feel so useless.

Why? Why had King been the one to die, why did all of them have to die while he was stuck in this world that was slowly devouring him, absorbing everything that was good, everything that was worth fighting for, leaving behind a cold, empty carcass.

Elaine.

A twisted and broken feeling of envy befell him. Because King could be and now was with her while he never would, and the unjust thought swallowed him whole for a moment, his heart captured in his self-made purgatory. But as fast as it overcame him, the darkness left him, leaving behind little more than regret and guilt. The self-hatred that he had managed to seal away, but that he was carrying wherever he went, not eliminated, only hidden deep inside, it came back to him with full force.

Ban could not, for the life of him, recall what he had last said to King. Had he made fun of him? It would be so darn typical of him to do that. It had to have been after Escanor's funeral, that much was a given. King had been with Diane back then and…

Highly alert once more, Ban forced himself to build up his composure again until he managed to spit out the question that was loudly banging at the insides of his head. "Do you know anything about a Giant girl being with that Fairy? She may have been human sized, but… was she there, too?"

The two men shared a confused look that resulted in a snarled return from one of them, while the other seemed more interested in the nearly empty bottle in front of them. "Why'd there be a Giant with that Fairy guy? Think you got one too many ales for today."

Ban didn't concern himself with them any longer than necessary, heading out of the bar, out of the town, his feet finding the way to Liones' capital by themselves. He needed to know what had happened, needed to know if there was anything left to mourn over.

Diane better not dare having died as well.

~ : ~

She couldn't stand any of them anymore.

Couldn't stand Gerheade's dead gaze whenever she looked at the former Fairy King as if she was seeing him like this for the first time, couldn't stand the tender chatter of Fairies that had slowly started to build up again towards an ear bursting crescendo, as the desire to indulge in the peace they had known just a few days ago replaced their dread and sorrow. Couldn't stand how the forest outside rushed over from fall straight to spring while inside of her there was only winter.

Diane was left alone with her thoughts, and it was driving her mad, but the alternative was being around all these pitiful beings whose mere presence nauseated her. So she always chose isolation, watching the days creep by ever so slowly, wondering what it was that she had left to do. But she never came up with anything.

She had considered going to the Necropolis, and in her weaker moments, the idea circled back into her mind. But she knew that the version of King she would find there could not be brought back, and she couldn't bear the thought of parting from him again. If she were to go to the Capital of the Dead, the only thing she would bring back would be more painful memories.

And Diane already had plenty of those to spare.

Because she still loved him even though he was dead, and, if she admitted it to herself, she knew he would never come back to her. But the memories still remained, and the dreams still remained, and in those King was never dead. She remembered the little cave they had once lived in, the only place she had ever truly called home, and she remembered being struck by a vicious fever, begging him to not leave her alone, convincing him to stay. And she remembered how he swore to love her and always be there for her, but mostly she remembered not giving him any reply, not putting her feelings into words.

It filled her with overwhelmingly painful regret, the uncertainty of whether or not Harlequin, in the end, had known, truly _known_, how much she had loved him, how much she had needed him and still did.

All the while, in any waking moment and even during the delirious state of half-sleep that interjected each pain-ridden day, Diane was surrounded by the scent of gold Osmanthus that she was not quite sure whether or not she was imagining it, but it lulled her to sleep with a sense of security either way.

It had always been the one thing that she had connected with the word 'home' the most.

~ : ~

Diane had no idea how long he had been standing there, watching silently, his long shadow cast from the low hanging sun seeming to be less reluctant to enter than he himself was. There was an immeasurable grief in his eyes and a lack of strength in his stance, but it didn't matter because someone had come along, _he_ had come along, and he knew exactly how she was feeling.

"Ban!" Diane cried, stumbling to her feet, bridging the gap between them, clinging onto him in a desperate hug, searching for the support she had lost.

"Hey, Diane. Glad to see you," he mumbled over her head, the relief in his voice overshadowed by the very same hurt she was feeling inside. "I heard of what happened. Wasn't sure if you were still here."

"I'm all fine," she reassured, only lying halfway. She even managed to flash a tear-ridden smile at him that came to her easier now that she wasn't alone with the pain anymore. Because Ban would surely know what to do.

"I went to Liones' capital first, to ask Hector if any of the rumors were true." There he paused for a moment, unsure if he wanted to continue, until he gathered the strength to do so. "Do you know exactly how… how he died? What happened to him?"

"No. All I can guess is that Agravaine is responsible. But I don't need to know anything more. It doesn't matter right? King is dead. No matter how."

Ban stiffened a little under her grip. "I guess that's true. But that ass Agravaine still has a lot to pay for. He'd planned this just so he can force Hector to declare war against Camelot even though everyone knows Camelot's army's currently stronger in manpower. The whole thing is way over Hector's head already. We can help turn the tides though. Take that piece of crap down," he said, but his voice lacked the motivation for the task ahead, bitterness his only source of energy.

Diane pulled away from him, unable to look at him for longer. This was exactly what she didn't strive for. Revenge. Her heart knew well enough that revenge wouldn't bring the dead back to life, and it wouldn't heal the wounds within her soul. Meliodas had once levelled an entire kingdom out of rage, and Helbram, King's longtime best friend, had been so consumed by revenge that he had gone on a murderous killing spree against humankind. In the end it hadn't brought peace to either of them, and Diane was by no means willing to follow into past footsteps that would only lead to suffering. She was tired of all the fighting that had controlled too much of her life.

And she also wasn't sure if Agravaine was really the one to blame. Because in the end, there had been a reason why King had left towards Liones, why he had agreed on sacrificing for the higher cause. A cause for his death that she had found in the dark hours of nights, when she had been trapped in a state between asleep and awake, entirely restless and simultaneously exhausted to the brink of collapse.

"I told him to go," Diane murmured to the empty space next to Ban before finding the strength to state what her mind already knew, louder this time. "I told him to go. He wouldn't have gone if I hadn't pushed him to it. He is dead – because I told him the peace between Liones and Camelot was more important than anything else. But it's not. Not for me."

She didn't dare looking into Ban's eyes, afraid to find the same judgement in them that she already carried around with herself.

"Diane, it's not your fault, you hear me? It's not your fault! Agravaine was the one to kill King. Not you." His voice was steady, and he said every word with such conviction that Diane couldn't help herself but to look at him again, and all she found was pain, regret, suffering – and a compassion that she had rarely seen with the Sin of Greed.

And despite how grateful she was for his words, all Diane wanted now was to change the subject, to make herself think of something other than the swirling pool of guilt that even his kind words hadn't dried out and that was threatening to pull her into its depths. There was only one other thing she worried about, and once more it became the one thing her mind would cling onto, a lifeline in the stormy sea.

"Did you find the Captain? Or Elizabeth?"

"No. But we'd know if something happened to them. And the Captain is too tough to be taken down by anything else than his own stupidity. And he's got Elizabeth to take care of that." The small smile on Ban's face was genuine, and, somehow, it managed to break through Diane's own darkness, shining light on her spirit to warm her from the inside with the thought of Elizabeth and Meliodas together. And for the first time for what felt to have been ages, Diane smiled as well, and it didn't cause the pain to surge up again.

"You're right. Ban –?", she began, trying and failing to keep her voice steady. But she needed to say this. Because the last time she held back her words for another day, it had turned out to be too late afterwards. "Thank you. For coming."

"Hey, don't mention it. It's been a while since I've last been to this place. Has changed a bit."

There was a hidden meaning within his words, but to Diane it would have been just as obvious if he had said it out loud. Everything around here reminded him of Elaine, the love of his life, that he had fought so hard to bring back from the dead. He had likely planned on never venturing near the Fairy King's Forest again, for it only held the last remnants of past days that had once been glimmering with hope but now were reduced to ash and dust in the wake of death.

And once again, Diane found her own story aligned with Ban's, despite her best efforts to never even consider the tragedy that might one day crawl up her door again, to take all that was left.

But Merlin had lied to her, and King had lied to her, and it left her deformed and empty, with nowhere to turn to. Ban had found meaning in his task of finding the Captain, and now had the goal of taking down Agravaine to work towards. But Diane wasn't sure if she was ready to search for closure.

"Do you know what you're going to do now?" Ban asked then, the smile having left his voice.

"I won't go back to Liones with you. I don't want to keep fighting when I don't even know what it is that I'm fighting for."

"I see. As long as you don't end up sulking somewhere, blaming yourself. I've been there Diane. And it's not worth it. You have to keep on. That's what King would have wanted at least. You know you meant the world to him."

"Yes. I know," Diane whispered, the truth known to her all too well, with all of King's promises still fresh in her mind, even without Ban reminding her of them. Promises that were now empty and would forever remain unfulfilled.

Ban and Diane hugged again, the loss they felt binding them together.

"If you ever need anything, just ask. Even when all the others have gone to who-knows-where, I still got your back, okay?" Ban said firmly, without letting go of her. "After all, we're practically siblings-in-law."

The idea – once too ridiculous to even conceive – caused her to smile into his shoulder, and the emptiness surrounding her retrieved back a few feet, allowing her to breathe more easily. And even though Diane knew that it wouldn't be like that for long, that their paths would eventually diverge again, her heart still felt lighter in her chest.

"Do you want to talk to them?" Diane asked, the thought just occurring to her. "King and Elaine, I mean. I'll wait outside."

"You sure, you –?"

"Yes. You know where to find her."

And with that, she finally let go of his support and stepped outside where the night was beginning to settle in. With the rustling of leaves calming her mind, she directed her steps towards the hidden lake surrounded by copper beeches without even needing to think about it. She knew that it was the one place that could strengthen the decision that had begun to float around in her head and that was slowly but relentlessly turning into her only option.

To leave.

~ : ~

Ban only stayed long enough to make sure that Diane was stable enough to be left on her own – and that she still didn't want to go with him – before beginning to make his way back towards the capital of Liones, to support Hector in the upcoming war as the only member of the Seven Deadly Sins.

It was less his departure than her own inner discourse that had prompted Diane to stick to the decision she had made in her head but was still gathering up the strength to actually carry out. So she just stood there, at the entrance to the inner chamber of the Sacred Tree, a part of her wanting to finally let go, to run away from the cause of her pain, the rest still unable to let the world move forward, unable to carry on with what was left of her own life. One look inside, one look at King resting peacefully, almost made her revise her decision, causing her hands to tremble violently.

Trancelike, she went back to his side, kneeling down, and taking a hold of his hand one last time. She almost managed to convince herself that it was cold.

Her vision went blurry as she leant down, placing a soft kiss on his forehead.

_Farewell, King._

And then she let go and turned around, her steps growing steadier with each breath of cool night air she convinced her lungs to take in, walking and walking. She turned the ametrine embedded into the 'Shrinking Bracelet' twice, causing herself as well as her clothes and the bracelet itself to turn to their actual size again, without ever slowing down, until she stepped out of the forest.

A cold breeze made her shiver for a moment, but she didn't turn around, not even to take one last look at the place that housed some of her most precious as well as some of her most painful memories, the place that, if she didn't leave it behind now, would forever trap her into the cage made out of regret and sorrow for what was lost. The decision was made and revising it would be nothing but a pointless effort.

And so, she kept on walking.

* * *

Thank you for reading, as always. Let me know if you found this one too depressing. I thought it would be better to have a decently long grieving section and focus on moving on in the following chapters. An extra thanks to those who commented or followed, it's very much appreciated.


	5. All that you gave me

The war between the opposing kingdoms of Liones and Camelot came to an end in one final battle, pitting the two armies of unequal strength against each other. For the longest time, the forces of King Hector were fighting an uphill battle that only saw a grave defeat ahead of them, having constantly been forced to retreat from their positions. It was said that King Agravaine had planned his strategy in precise prediction of his foes' every move, his impeccable magic and fighting skills proving to be unmatched by any allies of Liones. But in the confusion of the battle, the self-proclaimed King of Camelot saw himself faced with an adversary he wasn't able to overcome in the end. Stories told of a man who couldn't be stopped by death itself in his quest to kill the King of Camelot.

Some said it was the legendary Sin of Wrath Meliodas himself that had appeared out of nowhere to put an end to Agravaine's reign.

In the end, the knights of Camelot surrendered, at a complete loss without their leader's guidance. A council was soon re-established to rule over Camelot, to prevent the abuse of power by a single individual. Over time, trust grew and flourished between the two kingdoms again, heralding a new era of peace in Britannia.

Diane only ever heard stories about these events, as she had isolated herself from the war and the human race in its entirety. The outcome of it all had become a mere secondary matter of concern. But if she had still been at the Fairy King's Forest, she would have been present as Ban brought the Spirit Spear Chastifol back to its owner, having retrieved it from Agravaine's clutches in the aftermath of the war.

It was the last time he ever stepped into the Fairy Realm.

Similar to her detachment to humans, Diane no longer concerned herself with the Fairy Race either, and, as the years went by, they seemed to alienate themselves more and more from the rest of the world, cut off from everyone outside in idyllic ignorance, living and dying without ever setting foot into the cruelty out there. For all she knew, it was possible that they had all simply withered away, their loss of strength equal to the gain of power of the humans, leaving behind an empty forest that would follow them soon.

But Diane couldn't claim that the Giants fared any better. She had once wandered to Megadozer, the past home of her clan. But it had been abandoned, moss and tendrils covering the walls, roots having split the stone itself. And while she had never truly been happy here, she still felt the loss of her clan resonate in her heart, and it started to make her undo the last bonds that had previously tied her to this life of hers. The Giant Race wasn't extinct, their magic and connection to the earth could still be felt in the vast lands around their capital, but they seemed to have gone their separate ways. She wondered what could have been if she had returned to them after the Holy War.

Lost in thought, Diane traced her fingertips over the bark of the closest tree, taking in the warmth spreading from it, feeling the contours of its surface. It had become a strange habit of hers, in order to feel the world around her, she longed to touched the surrounding plants that vibrated with liveliness. It comforted her when she was feeling the most broken.

Usually whenever she was thinking about him.

A sound startled her, Diane's senses suddenly alert, as she felt the shift within the current of the earth around her.

An intruder.

Her training betraying her peaceful tendencies, Diane shifted into a defensive pose, bracing herself for whatever it was that was closing in on her. She carefully moved one foot over the solid ground, feeling the vibrations of the earth as something large was heading her way from her righthand side. Following the sensation of feeling something approaching, she could hear it, a steady pounding on the ground. And at last, Diane was able to see it, breaking through the scrubs, and, for the first time in a long time, she found herself face to face with someone at eye-level.

Well, almost at least.

The Giant in front of her did not only appear younger, he was also a bit smaller than Diane, his hair a mess of clay-soil-colored strands. His eyes widened as he inspected her, only to flash her a bright smile as he decided that the opposite Giant wouldn't pose a threat. He was missing a few teeth.

"Hi there. Didn't expect to run into another one. You live somewhere near? I've never seen you here before."

Diane was still too perplexed by his sudden appearance to give a response. Not long after having looked for other Giants, she simply stumbled into one by chance. The odds of an encounter like that had to be marginally small. She studied his face again, looking for something familiar, something she had seen in her past, but finding nothing to indicate that she had met him before. Then again, it had been over fifty years since she had last seen another Giant apart from Matrona and Drole, and even that now lay far behind her.

The Giant boy didn't seem too suspicious of her absent-minded behavior, instead grinning at her again. "I'm Gahlor, by the way."

"Diane."

She hadn't made use of her own name in quite a while, and hearing it come from her lips so easily felt strange to her. Was it not the name of a different person, a younger, more innocent girl that had met the world with optimism?

"Great, it's been a while since I last got to see any other ones. Like, a really long while," Gahlor said, the loneliness of his words unable to damper his cheerful attitude. Again, Diane wondered how old he was.

"Do you live all by yourself?" she asked, compassion rising up from her chest. She knew what it meant to be alone.

"Yep, been that way almost all my life. What about you? You got someone?"

_His_ smile invaded her thoughts again.

"I once did."

Gahlor nodded understandingly, not giving her response much thought. Excitement filled his eyes again as an idea came to him. "Hey Diane, I wanted to go look for food. Care to join?"

The childlike light in his eyes made all her resistance futile, and her composure trembled dangerously. Then again, maybe it would help her to spare time for someone else, and maybe some of Gahlor's upbeat nature would reach her in the dark place her hope had fallen into. And even if it was all for nothing, then at least she would have tried her best to concern her thoughts with something else than the empty routine of watching the days pass by, the only thing keeping her together since King had been taken away from her world. It had gotten better over time, though not by much it seemed.

Diane hadn't been too sure as to how Gahlor had planned on getting food, but the fact that he simply sat down beneath the trees, close to a human-made road, caused her to form a somewhat concrete suspicion. And she didn't like where her thoughts were taking her.

But for now, she decided it would be better to wait without jumping to conclusions. Since she knew nothing about Gahlor, it would have been wrong to assume that his intentions aligned with what she had experienced with other Giants.

The faint movement of the earth beneath her hand signaled her that someone was following the road in front of them, and they were also coming closer. A few seconds after coming to that conclusion, Gahlor shifted beside her, a grim expression almost overtaking his jovial demeanor.

"Perfect timing," was all he said, before readying himself for whatever was coming for them.

Diane silently clenched her fist around a handful of fine gravel, seeing her fears be enacted in front of her.

The man coming into view struggled with carrying the bagged dear that he had loaded onto his shoulders, taking his time for every step to prevent himself from stumbling. His loud breathing created clouds in the cold air. He was old and presumably as innocent as one could be as a human. But Gahlor proceeded with his plan, picking up the decently sized rock next to him, ignoring the old man's struggle that was all too visible.

Only when his arm lifted for the throw, Diane's thoughts connected to her body again, and she forcefully took a hold of Gahlor's wrist, causing him to drop the rock.

"Ow," he winced, trying and failing to free his hand from her grip. "Hey, I wasn't going to hit him directly, just scare him a bit. Make him drop the meat."

Nothing had changed.

Giants were still unable to overcome their nature, still lurking for a fight, picking every chance to further deepen the distrust they received from other clans, doing their best to stay bound to their traditions even though it caused them to lose to the future. But Gahlor was just a kid, he didn't know any better. This was likely what he had known all his life, take to survive or die trying, so blaming him for his actions would be just as wrong as standing by passively and watching him throw the rock. All she could do was doing her best to make him see that he could change himself.

It only needed one person of trust.

"You can't go steal from people. Ever. Has this man done anything to hurt you? I doubt he has," Diane said, her voice steady and firm.

"But humans always try to kill us –"

"And what else can they do when Giants like you take what they need to live away from them? It's important to stand up for yourself and for those you want to protect, but fighting for the sake of fighting helps no one. You'll only hurt yourself and others. In the end, you'll only give them a reason to hate you."

Diane looked at the Giant boy, locking his gaze with hers, hoping to show the confidence she was feeling within her words. This was what she believed in, the one truth she had known since she had been a child and what had caused her to leave her Clan for five hundred years; because she had been unable to identify herself with their mentality.

After releasing his wrist, Diane slowly got up, making her way towards the old man, ignoring Gahlor's warnings.

The human jumped as he saw her approaching, his eyes widening in terror, fear immobilizing him. Carefully, to not startle him further, Diane bend down, displaying a hopefully encouraging smile.

"Do you need any help, mister?" She asked, while extending an open palm to show him that she was unarmed.

The man managed to pull himself together rather quickly, and, though he still seemed a bit concerned, he gratefully accepted the offer, the desire to get out of the cold stronger than his suspicions against Giants. "Took me all day to hunt this thing down. But it turns out carrying it is even more exhausting."

Effortlessly, Diane picked the hunted prize up and fell into a light stroll to match the old man's pace. Looking back, she could see Gahlor standing reluctantly at the roadside, unsure what to make out of this situation. She wouldn't take the decision away from him; it was his choice whether or not he wanted to continue his life as he had without guidance.

But she couldn't help but smile to herself as he straightened himself and followed a few steps behind them. The old man stiffened a bit but decided not to ask about him. If they had planned something mischievous, there would have been nothing he could have done about it, anyway.

"You don't see Giants too often anymore. Not since the defeat of the Demon Clan," the human mumbled. "My home's just a little further down this road. With your help, we should be there in no time."

Just as promised, they soon came across a path leading away from the main road, partway frozen from last night's hoar frost. A small wooden hut awaited them at its end, settled beneath a trio of birch trees, the cold season leaving them bar any leaves. Diane put the dear down and handed it back to its owner.

"You have my thanks, uhm… what's the name again?"

"Diane. And this is Gahlor."

The human's eyes widened at her words, and he drew in one sharp breath. "Diane as in a member of the Seven Deadly Sins? Incredible, I had no idea some of you are still around! Britannia owes a lot to you guys. In that case you have even more of my thanks. If there's anything I can do to show my gratitude, please let me know," he said excitedly. "After the Demons appeared again, they destroyed many villages, such as my home. But after the Seven Deadly Sins took them down, we were able to rebuild everything. It must have been forty years ago now."

Diane noticed Gahlor staring at her, but she turned to the old man instead in an attempt to turn down his offer. "Thank you for your kindness, but I don't want to bother you anymore. Gahlor and I were just on the lookout for food."

Despite her protests, the old man insisted on both of them staying for dinner, even opening up to Gahlor a little bit, even though the young Giant still seemed to be a bit stressed out by the unfamiliar situation that he was faced with. But in the end, he got what he had been looking for, warm and tasteful food. And no one had been harmed because of it.

The day was already drawing to a close as Diane waved the old man goodbye, Gahlor right beside her, before turning away, continuing with the one thing she had left to do.

Walking onwards, no clear destination ahead.

"You could've told me that you were a member of the Seven Deadly Sins," Gahlor murmured, his voice nearly carried away by the wind that had started to blow more viciously.

"And would that have changed anything?" she asked, and while looking at him, all she could see in his dark brown eyes was herself, a wide-eyed child with nowhere to turn to and no one to ask for guidance. Until King had entered her life, the first person that she had learned kindness from, and the only one that had loved her with all her flaws.

"I believe that everyone can be their very best if they only choose to work towards that. And… and if they have someone to show them how to get there," Diane said, memories towering in front of her. But it was as if, for the first time in years, they didn't fill her with regret and hurt.

They warmed her spirit instead.

"And you have someone like that?" Gahlor asked, slowly beginning to grasp what she was meaning with her words, with her actions, with her behavior.

Diane looked at the world ahead, barely noticing the small snowflakes that had begun to twirl in the air, only slowly, reluctantly, settling on the earth to end their uncoordinated dance that found beauty in chaos.

All she could see were bright eyes, like shards of amber, accompanied by a smile that had the strength to pick her up, to make her believe in the best person she could be.

_Don't ever change who you are or who you want to be like._

"I once did," she said with a small smile. "I was just a child, younger than you are now, when I found a friend who taught me all these things. He didn't even remember where he came from, but he knew every tree and every flower by name. He was the kindest person I've ever met, and he'd still always insist that I was the one who was openminded and forgiving. He told me about what it means to have children and about a contract called marriage. And you know what happened after I'd lost him for two hundred years? I found him again. Or maybe he was the one who found me that time. I don't know how slim the chances are of something like that happening. But I'm infinitely grateful."

For everything.

~ : ~

Sometimes he believed that all he had ever known was loss. Loss had torn him apart, to the point where he had ripped his heart out and erased his memories, just to escape the aching pain. Of course, there had been times where he had been incredibly thankful to have an artificial heart, to be able to feel gratefulness and happiness and even have dreams and desires. But there were those times where he didn't know how to make this terrifying magical mechanism in his chest stop, how to end this feeling that was birthed out of loss.

When the Seven Deadly Sins were disbanded, Gowther experienced the latter again.

All of them had something to do or somewhere to go, except him. There was only this one last task that he had been asked to fulfill by the Captain and Elizabeth during a quiet moment in the after-war festivities – to erase her memories of her past lives.

He tried to talk them out of it, to make them ask someone else, maybe Merlin, anyone but him. Too well he remembered how much pain he had caused King and Diane when he had taken away her memories, and too often, he had been faced with a grim reminder of what he had done to Mael when he had altered his very existence.

But they begged him to do it anyway because they couldn't be sure that the end of the Demon Clan had truly lifted their curse. Elizabeth said that she would gladly trade those past memories for a better chance to stay with Meliodas, and, in the end, Gowther agreed to use his magical ability for them.

Only for them to leave.

Only for all of them to leave.

Being a member of the Seven Deadly Sins had given him stability, comrades to rely on and friends to help him through adjusting to his regained heart. Gowther had been _happy_ for a while, or as close to happiness as his heart could make him feel. But without them he lost the support that he was still in desperate need of. He didn't have anyone except for them.

Not since Nadja.

Aimless, Gowther wandered Britannia until he found a small village at the very southern coast where, sometimes, he could see a faint line of landmass, just at the edge of the horizon, across the ocean waves. He decided to stay, looking and wondering as to what lay in that land out of reach.

There, in the village of Dover, his mind was finally able to calm itself, only concerning itself with daily issues of broad irrelevance. Despite his previous conceptions, Gowther was able to live first and foremost. Reading the books that he had found interesting, wondering about the land across the ocean, and participating in the lives of the humans around him. He watched them get married, have children, grow old, and die over the course of their short lifespan. And while the Seven Deadly Sins were always lingering in the back of his consciousness, and he did return to Liones once for Escanor's funeral, fleeing the scene as soon as he could, he was able to concentrate on himself, set apart from the bigger picture.

But like all things, it didn't last.

It took a while for him to find out about the faith of the other Sins, snow covering the land once, twice, until he didn't count anymore, all in the perfect illusion that they were all alive and well, and that he only needed to go back to Liones to find them and be united with them, reviving the days of their comradery.

Only when close to every single inhabitant who had been alive when he had initially set foot into Dover had passed on, was he unable to keep up the charade with himself, and the realization of what the gone-by years could have brought with them crept up his spine in a cold shiver. At that point it was already too late for him to tell how many years had passed since the Seven Deadly Sins had walked their separate ways.

It was then that he found out about King.

A peddler told a crowd of wide-eyed children the story of how the war between Liones and Camelot had escalated, and how the third Fairy King, Harlequin, had been killed by King Agravaine under the pretense of a peaceful meeting.

When he looked for Merlin for help, no one was able to tell him anything about her whereabouts.

Mentally beaten, he settled on finding Diane, knowing that she had not died in the event leading up the war between Camelot and Liones. But he was unable to find her, and all he knew was that she had left the Fairy King's Forest.

The only indication that King and Diane had ever been a part of this world, the only thing they had left behind, was the flowing sea of violets within the Fairy King's Forest. Blooming in an everlasting spring.

This otherworldly scenery on his mind, Gowther walked down the street with downright mechanical precision. If he hadn't been a Doll, he would have been faced with exhaustion, hunger, and cold, but none of it concerned him, not today, nor any other day that lay ahead. He would simply walk down this road until it ended and then follow the next one and the one after that. He had no idea how to find Diane, no idea where she could have gone to. But it was the only thing that motivated him, that prevented him from going insane.

And there was almost nothing more terrifying to him than losing control again.

When it had happened in the past, he had at least had Merlin to keep an eye on him, but now he was robbed of that option as well.

So far, the fear was still manageable to him, only slowly poisoning his mind, droplet by droplet, but he couldn't tell how long it would stay that way. He had to find Diane no matter what it would take, as soon as possible, but his chances were incredibly poor. Finding someone within an area as large as Britannia with no actual trace was unlikely at best. At worst, it was impossible when rounding up the numbers.

But sometimes the universe didn't care about chance and probability. How else could someone explain the founding of the Seven Deadly Sins, a group of people from all races, all of them being sentenced for a crime that had, often wrongfully, branded them with a Sin. And how else could someone explain the insignificant possibility of Gowther and Diane reuniting that day.

She must have seen his silhouette from afar because when Gowther was still unable to see anything other than the slightly curved road up ahead, he heard someone call his name from far away, a call from the past that nearly failed to reach him. He screwed up his eyes to better make up for his poor eyesight that even his glasses couldn't fully cover, but he had trouble identifying anything concrete.

And then his eyes widened again as a figure came into view, quickly crossing the distance, until she was standing right in front of him in her Giant form.

Diane's smile was hiding all the sadness in the world, but even now it never lacked the warmth he recalled from past days.

Gowther's magical heart reciprocated the emotions displayed in front of him in a manner that had almost become natural to him, and he was surprised to be grateful for it.

"I've found you," he said, tears audible in his voice.

* * *

Thank you all for reading, you know that by now. The next chapter will be the final one, so I hope you're excited for that. And I think one of these days, I will only write happy stories without all this depressing subject matter. Maybe. I actually have this weird thing were I like writing about hurt and angst a lot more than actually reading about it.


	6. Until we'll see each other again

Humans often had the strange habit of remembering their loved ones through objects. Particularly those who had left the face of this world were kept in memory with drawn or painted pictures, or small trinkets that had belonged to the dead person in question. Diane had never seen the need for this behavior because to her, the memories stored within one's heart would be more than enough to feel connected to someone, even after their death.

Or so she had thought.

Because recently, she had to admit to herself that she had nothing in her possession that her wounded mind could connect to King.

The gifts that he had given to her had never been of physical value, at least in the traditional sense of the word. She wouldn't have known what to do with jewelry – as far as she knew a popular symbol of one's affection among humans – or anything along those lines anyway, but now that he was gone, Diane longed for something that she could actually look at or touch with her fingers, something that would remind her of him.

But the only thing in her possession that came remotely close to such an object was the 'Shrinking Bracelet' that she still carried around with her. For what purpose she wasn't quite sure, as she had no desire of actually using it. Still, she found herself often turning it around her wrist without giving much thought to it.

This time, Gowther, who was walking beside her at a steady pace, noticed her fidgeting with the magical item and seemed to be deeply fascinated by it.

"Is this one of Merlin's experimental items?" he asked, his tone almost flat, but he couldn't hide his excitement completely.

"Actually, it is," Diane confirmed, and, without second-guessing, she freed the bracelet from her wrist. Carefully holding it between her fingers, she turned the ametrine embedded into the piece of jewelry and watched as it shrunk to a size more manageable for a human. Then she dropped the small item into Gowther's open palm, causing him to first look at her in confusion, only for his captivation to get the better of him.

Diane watched as Gowther examined the remnant of Merlin's – his mentor's and long-time supporter's – magic, caressing the bracelet like an injured bird.

"You can keep it if you want to," she heard herself say and then continued with more confidence. "I think it could help you more than me."

"But it is yours –," Gowther argued, seemingly thrown off guard by the simple offer.

"I don't plan on using it again, and, well, you've always known her better than I did. I'm sure she wouldn't mind you having it. Wherever she is right now."

Gowther looked at her again in bewilderment, her kind gesture resulting in a loss of words from his side, but the unspoken gratefulness visible in his eyes was more than enough to make her feel like having made the right decision. Maybe Dolls could use objects to help them remember, too.

"I would like to give you something in return, but I'm afraid I don't have anything that would come close to an equal value," Gowther said, having stopped walking, his fingers still clutched around the bracelet. With his free hand he formed a string of pure purple energy, reminiscent of his magical ability, Invasion. "This is the best I can do, if you allow. I have practiced this reversed form of Invasion for a while, but I can't conclude that it actually works the way I intend it to."

Diane eyed the magical arrow hovering above Gowther's hand with a mixture of curiosity and unease. She wasn't exactly fond of people playing around in her head, but she also trusted Gowther to mean no harm, so she nodded her head reassuringly towards him and waited for the impact of magical energy.

Before she even realized something was happening, her surroundings had changed, the grassy hills and the cobblestone road on which they had been standing having disappeared alongside with Gowther. Instead, she found herself in what she immediately identified as the capital of Liones, more specifically the walkway on top of the inner castle walls, the city stretching out below her, thousands of small lights from candles, lanterns and celebratory bonfires shining up to the night sky.

When Diane turned her head to further inspect her surroundings, she was surprised to look at herself, shrunken down to human size, staring at the stars above. And there, hovering just a few feet away from her, the sight of him making her heart falter, was King.

Alive, looking at the version of her that was transfixed by the night sky.

Only then did Diane begin to grasp that what she was seeing was one of Gowther's memories, and she was experiencing everything through his eyes.

"It's about to start any second now," Diane heard a voice say from her other side – or rather Gowther's other side –, and when she turned towards its source, she saw Elizabeth sitting on one of the wide merlons at the edge of the walkway. Her fingers were intertwined with Meliodas' who was sitting next to her, his feet dangling over the edge. Behind them stood Merlin and Escanor, the latter in his smaller night form, and further down the walkway, Diane spotted Ban casually leaning against the outer wall of the tower marking the end of the walkway, his gaze focused on the sky just like everyone else's.

Now Diane knew from when these memories originated. It was the night of the festivities, after they had stopped the Ten Commandments and ended the Holy War.

The last time all of them had been together.

True to Elizabeth's words, the sky suddenly erupted in bursts of color from all shades of the rainbow, the sound of the fireworks nearly drowning out the crescendo of cheers coming from the city below. The Seven Deadly Sins and Elizabeth awed at the magical fireworks celebrating their victory, each of them caught in a moment untouched by worries of the past or future.

Diane in Gowther's body turned back towards King, her heart aching while she studied his facial features enlightened by colorful explosions. Seeing him like this, as if had never gone away, was more than she could handle, and all she wanted was to call out to him and make him look at her, no matter how brief the moment.

But she stopped herself from doing so. Even if it had worked, she already had her own memories of this night. It was the same night that he had asked her if she would want to live with him at the Fairy King's Forest. And that she would never forget, for it had changed her life in every way possible.

Diane blinked away unshed tears as King and the memory slowly faded away, leaving her with a ghostly afterimage when she found herself back inside her own body, only Gowther next to her.

Before she could say anything to thank him or to ask him why he had shown her this specific moment, Gowther began to talk in a low voice that was almost inaudible for her. "I believe it is my happiest memory," he said, smiling to himself, barely taking notice of her.

There was nothing that Diane could have added, even if she had been able to break through to him, and so they continued their walk almost reluctantly, resuming the search for what was left of their past and their team.

~ : ~

Diane had gone through a time in which she had almost lost hope. In which she had known little more than loneliness. But with Gowther's sudden appearance it was as though a switch had been turned, to cast light onto those dark days of the past, and Diane remembered how it felt to be connected to someone, a former teammate, a friend. And just as Gowther eased the pain with his mere present, Diane hoped to help him overcome the fear and crushing feeling of being abandoned that were constantly visible in his eyes.

But Gowther wasn't the only one she hoped to reunite with, and, somehow, all pieces fell back into place when Gowther and Diane crossed another one of the million hillsides covering the land of Britannia only to see the outline of a house against the sun, like a long-forgotten dream. The round shape of the building was crowned with a spiraling roof that ended in a pointy top, unmistakably imagined after the tapering hat of a wizard from stories of old. Diane faintly noticed her legs threatening to give away under her weight at the sight of the familiar shape, the resemblance to the original Boar Hat hitting her with the force of colliding stars.

And as her hope was rising up like the sun of a new dawn, she could make out two figures in front of the house's porch.

He looked the same as ever, his blond hair a wild, untamable mess, bright green eyes shining with energy. He had his hands crossed behind his head and was looking at the pair that was approaching. The woman next to Meliodas walked towards them, slowly at first, before picking up speed, her long silver hair trailing behind her as the wind got a hold of it.

When Elizabeth reached them, Diane had fallen to her knees, overwhelmed by the surge of happiness that exploded into tears and a wide smile, as she looked into Elizabeth's eyes that were still bearing the symbol of the Goddess Clan.

The curse had been broken.

Elizabeth returned the gaze, unspoken words haunting her expression, before turning to Gowther, who had only been standing there, completely frozen, and flung herself at him in a hug.

When Elizabeth turned back to Diane, her eyes, too, were glimmering with tears. "I'm so happy to see both of you," Elizabeth said softly.

Meliodas had taken the time to join them as well, a grin lightening his features as he raised one hand to greet them. "Yo Diane, Gowther, where've you guys been hanging around?"

"Captain," Diane began, swallowing a new wave of tears. "I really should punch you for having disappeared for so long without a word."

"Don't ya worry, I already took care of that."

When Diane turned her attention to the owner of the voice, she saw Ban heading their way, having apparently come from the Boar Hat styled house as well. Upon reaching the group, he hit the back of Meliodas' head to prove his point, hardly even making the Captain's head yank forward with only a fraction of his strength, all of it resulting in an even wider grin from the Captain.

Elizabeth spoke again, as she felt the need to explain Ban's presence to them. "Sir Ban arrived just a few days ago, and –"

"Elizabeth, aren't we over this whole Sir knight thing? Haven't been a Sir since, uhm, well, a couple years at least, if you can even count that. Certainly never felt like one." Ban turned to Diane, his smirk halfway leaving his face. "So, Diane, I see Gowther's found ya before I did. You know, you could've left a message. Gerheade's been worried sick – if she'd have the emotional range to show it."

"I didn't think you would go back there, Ban," Diane said without actually delving into an explanation and rather turning the accusation around to its owner.

"Yeah, unfinished business, ya know?"

"Diane, we've heard of what happened. I am so sorry – for not being able to help, as well. Meliodas and I have been worried about you," Elizabeth said, turning the conversation into a direction that Diane very much would have liked to ignore for a while.

"Don't apologize. I'm – I'm just happy that you and the Captain are alright and that the curse seems to have been lifted if I'm getting that right. It's been so long..."

The group just stood there for a moment, everyone smiling and grinning like idiots, at least three of them at the brink of tears, and no one was able to put their feelings into words.

What was left of them had reunited.

And Diane had never felt so relieved in her life while at the same time a great sense of longing befell her for the days that, right now, seemed almost at reach but were long lost.

Even still, the sunshine cast upon them came with a warmth that Diane had found lacking for so long, and it brought light to the memories of their days as a feared group of knights known as the Seven Deadly Sins.

"Why don't we all go over to eat something? Sir – I mean Ban has promised to make dinner," Elizabeth said as the first one to find words again.

"Don't pin me down on it."

"That would be very much appreciated," Gowther stated, generously ignoring Ban's comment. He sounded more like himself now, after reuniting with the others. "Especially when considering that the Captain's skills on that matter have likely not improved."

Meliodas grinned wickedly. "Whaddo ya expect when Elizabeth won't let me practice?"

"It's really not like that –"

"Alright, whatever, I'm gonna play cook for ya, just to keep the peace between you two." With these words, Ban smacked the shoulders of Elizabeth and the Captain who had been standing on either of his sides, this time sending both of them stumbling forward.

Meliodas and Ban were the first ones to burst out laughing, but soon the rest of them joined in, the sound of pure joy filling the air.

Diane hardly remembered a time when she had laughed as much as she did today, a real laugh that made everything feel a little better, put her soul at ease. What they talked about was mundane, irrelevant even, the discussions of what haunted them set aside for a while. They all had their inner demons, it had always been that way, but being accompanied by similarly damaged people enabled them to let the others as well as themselves escape their worries for a while. To simply enjoy being together again after all these years.

Despite this, Diane couldn't stop herself from thinking about King a few times and noticing how their group had gotten smaller since the last time they had been together like this. And even those who were present had changed over the past decades and in more ways than one.

Ban was wearing his hair longer again, and he seemed to be calmer, a bit more thoughtful. It didn't stop him from trying to set up a drinking contest with the Captain – that he had no chance of actually winning – but the change was obvious when he only nodded at the Captain denying the challenge.

Gowther had changed his hair to a less recognizable color a while ago, befitting the less outlandish façade that he had forged for himself. There was a quiet within him, as if he was afraid that a wrong word from him could make all of them disappear, leaving him alone once more. And while he had opened up again in the presence of the others, this inner fear never left him entirely.

Diane herself only felt tired and empty, her energy, her strength having left her, forcing her to pick up the pieces of her own life, to assemble them to something that resembled her past self. But every time she looked at Elizabeth and the Captain, entangled in their unparalleled love for each other, she found hope spring in her heart again. She might never have this love again, but that did not mean that tragedy was the only outcome one could hope for.

After Ban's admittedly delicious food had long been eaten up, and the day was coming to an end, Diane found a quiet moment to talk to Elizabeth alone, a question pressing on her mind.

"Elizabeth, I was just wondering – if you don't mind me asking –?"

"Please go ahead," Elizabeth encouraged with a smile that made the Goddess Triskelion in her eyes shine more brightly.

"Has the curse really been lifted? Do you remember your past lives?"

Elizabeth stayed silent for a while, focused on her hands without really seeing them. Only reluctantly, she looked up at Diane again.

"I believe that the curse is really gone. Otherwise, I would have aged like a human, right? But aside from that… I still don't have any memories of my former selves. Meliodas has told me about these lives, but it's not the same, I guess. Even when looking like a member of the Goddess Clan, I don't remember ever being one. We stayed away for so long because we were afraid that something might trigger my memories and the curse with them, but it turned out to be an unfounded fear after all." Her voice had become small towards the end.

"I'm sorry, Elizabeth," Diane said, her eyes trailing away from her. "All I have left are memories. It's just – I wouldn't know what to do without them."

"It's okay, really. I still remember this life and the time I spend with all of you guys. And I know that I have this life with Meliodas. That's all I need."

Elizabeth looked to her side, and when Diane followed her gaze, she saw a halfway drunk Ban having put one arm over the Captain's shoulders, Gowther smiling peacefully next to them, his fingers continuously twirling Merlin's magical bracelet around.

Something deep inside of her was encouraging her to join them, to sit with them for a while and let all worries pass away. And when Elizabeth left to make her way back to their house, knowing with all her heart that Meliodas would come back to her soon, Diane slowly walked over to the former Sins. She sat down and hugged her knees, eyeing the hillside in front of her, the grass moving in waves of gold, as the low hanging sun was nearing the horizon.

"Diane?", she heard Meliodas say from her left, and only when she looked at him, he continued. Ban, who was now lying on the ground next to the Captain, seemed to be entirely unaware of their conversation. "There's a town nearby, and they wanna build a few new houses there. So, you could offer your strength if you want to. Elizabeth and I know a few people there, and I think they'd be really glad if you could help them out."

Diane saw the sincerity in his face and was once more amazed by the Captain's talent to motivate others, to bring them together. By simply giving her the opportunity to help others, he had ignited a candle that could shine through the dark – giving her a task so simple but with so much meaning behind it. It made her remember what Ban had said to her about keeping on, about overcoming the pain when she had been in need of a reason to continue the most.

A smile curled up her lips, matching the one she was looking at. "I'd love to."

But the emotional overload proved to be too much for her to cope with, and those traitorous tears swam in her eyes once again for Meliodas to see. "There, there, no reason to cry now, little girl," he said in the upbeat yet compassionate way that was so characteristic for him. He hadn't called her that way in ages.

There was a great understanding in his eyes; he knew full well what she had went through, as he had done so as well.

One hundred and six times.

But Meliodas had gone through it all without ever giving up, always carrying hope for the day to come where he would be united with his love for the rest of his existence, and he had been rewarded for it. There was one lifetime ahead of him in which a member of the Demon Clan and one from the Goddess Clan could be together, overcoming the obstacles that had tried to drive them apart.

And as Diane's eyes drifted back to the horizon, she was able to think about King and be grateful, not because of what she had lost, but because of what he had given to her. He had laid his life in front of her with a fundamental trust that he had only so rarely given to others because his lack of trust in himself had always held him back. King had changed her life for the better from the moment she had found him unconscious by the riverside, and the memories of him would stay with her forever.

_She was a young, carefree child, listening in awe as he explained the yellow flowers, daffodils, that were growing near their small cave to her. He told her the names of things that she hadn't even known had names to them._

_It was a few days after defeating the Great Holy Knight Hendrickson, and they watched the fireworks that accompanied the festivities. When she turned her head to look at him, she saw him looking at her with an unrivalled admiration, the bursts of color from the fireworks reflecting in his eyes._

_They were over the treetops of the Fairy King's Forest, and when they kissed, she was closer to him than ever before, his love for her overwhelming her and giving her security at the same time as she leaned against him._

_She heard him promise to her that he would always love her and be forever there for her, and she did not only believe him, but felt the same love as she answered with her eyes only._

_They had just passed the trial set up by Drole and Gloxinia, and she had just regained all her memories, and when she looked at him, she finally had the opportunity to tell him what she had kept secret for so long: That she had always loved him._

Now, she sat on a grass-covered hill, watching as her shadow as well as those of the other remaining Sins grew longer, dwelling on the past that filled her with warmth. "Thank you," she whispered to herself and only for him to hear. "Harlequin."

They sat on the hillside for the remainder of the day, their pasts haunting their minds while their future was filled with uncertainty and hope. The sun set behind them, but they waited a while longer, for the dawn of a new day to come, a day that would cast light onto the seven individuals that united long ago as a band of criminals turned Holy Knights, as the Seven Deadly Sins.

Escanor, Sin of Pride, buried at the graveyard of fallen heroes of Liones, brought down by the effects of time that befell each human being the same.

Merlin, Sin of Gluttony, disappearing from the face of this earth as she lost her last reminder of hope and purpose, her work, her knowledge, her belongings vanishing alongside her.

And King, Sin of Sloth, his life cut short because he had tried to intervene in a war that had been bigger than him and all he held dear, now caught in an eternal sleep that would never give him rest again.

Meliodas, Sin of Wrath, collecting memories of happiness and love to one day overshadow the pit of darkness inside of him.

Gowther, Sin of Lust, valuing every gesture of kindness made towards him like a treasure of immense importance, never asking for more than others gave him on their own behalf.

Ban, Sin of Greed, seeking beauty in the mundane, appreciating the small things that his burden of eternal life had yet to offer.

And Diane, Sin of Envy, still holding on, still walking onward towards the day when she would no longer dream of what she could never have again.

* * *

And with that, I conclude my first published work ever. It's been quite the journey. I still distinctly remember starting to write on a very cold day in December (yes, it's been that long) because the idea had kept circling my mind for weeks on end. I remember a great many writing sessions during my varius train trips, the Xenoblade Chronicles 2 soundtrack in my ears. Speaking of, the music for this game is phenomenal, and the final vocal track "One Last You" fits this story shockingly well. Check it out if you're curious!

Anyway, thank you to my brother for convincing me to publish this after like six months, and a great thank you to everyone who stuck with this story and my writing until the very end. Have an amazing day or evening or whatever time it is when you're reading this. All the best!


End file.
